The Lighter Side of Darkness
by Empress Dots
Summary: There's a silver lining to every cloud, and a lighter side to every darkness... This is the story of Golden Sun as told by Saturos, Menardi, Felix, and Alex. [Spoilers for TLA and eventually GS1] [indefinite hiatus]
1. Ch 1: The Darkness Before Dawn

**The Lighter Side of Darkness**

by Empress Dotdotdot

**Disclaimer:** Golden Sun and Golden Sun: TLA are not mine.

Comments and such:

This is set right after the beginning of the first Golden Sun. The first chapter is all about Sat and Men saving Felix, Kyle, and Felix's parents. This is also loosely based on the idea that Sat and Men were decent people during the game: they were just after a goal.

* * *

"Breathe into his mouth, you dolt!" Saturos yelled. "And ten, and eleven, and . . ." 

"You want me to what!"

"You heard me! Now do it!" Saturos glanced up, then quickly shook his head. "Never mind! There are more people in the river!"

Menardi groaned as Saturos breathed into his patient's mouth. "You can't expect me to save all of them!"

"Do it, Menardi!" He began pushing down on the boy's chest again. "No one should die due to our mistake! We already lost our whole raid team to this storm! No one else must perish, especially not innocents!"

Menardi grumbled, lifting up her skirts and trotting back over to the riverbank. Three people were in the water; two men and one woman. One of the men was still conscious and trying to drag himself and the other two to shore, though a wound in his forehead was bleeding profusely.

Menardi looked down into the muddy water and wrinkled her nose. It was just like Saturos to make her do this, and in a new dress, too! She took a step into the stream and shivered as her Psynergy subsided, repelled by the cold forces of Mercury that churned in the water.

She stretched out one hand. "You there! Leave the other two and grab my hand!"

The man gritted his teeth and continued to drag his companions to the shore. "I won't leave them!" he yelled. "We'll all be fine! We'll find a doctor and go back to Vale! They still have Jenna to look after, even if Felix is gone now!"

Saturos' patient burst into a coughing fit before the blue-haired man helped him sit up. He had fluffy brown hair hanging around his shoulders, with a green tunic and a blue cloak.

"Menardi!" Saturos yelled. "If you're afraid of a bit of water, then get back here and take care of this boy! I'll save those others."

The blonde turned around and stomped over to the boy, flicking back strands of her hair. "Fine. So be it." She knelt down, taking Saturos' place as he rushed over to the river. "Now, you wretch, let's see your grubby little face."

The boy opened his eyes and looked up at her. His eyes were a soft chocolate brown, rimmed with tears from his hard coughs. He wasn't nearly as young as Menardi had thought at first glance; he was at least thirteen or fourteen. As Menardi looked at the boy, her spite faded away. "Let's get you out of those clothes," she said, taking off his cloak. She put her skirt in her teeth and ripped off a large piece, then continued to strip the boy. He was shivering too much and coughing too hard to stop her. When he was in nothing but his underclothes, she wrapped the skirt around him. "This is wool from the north, so it'll keep you nice and warm," she said. "We wouldn't want you to freeze to death."

Saturos returned from the river with one person over his shoulder, one under his arm, and the still-conscious man leaning on his free shoulder. The wool-wrapped boy looked up at the people Saturos held. His chocolate eyes widened.

"Mom? Dad? And Kyle? What are you all doing here?"

"F-Felix?" the conscious man answered, his own eyes as wide as the boy's. "Your parents were so worried! We got hit by the boulder, too, or don't you remember?"

Felix shook his head, and Menardi interjected, "He wasn't breathing when we found him, Mr.-- Kyle, is it? Well, Kyle, he must've been knocked out. He inhaled a lot of water. Not to mention he almost froze to death."

"What of your companions?" Saturos asked, laying them in the small cave he and Menardi had been using as shelter. "Will they be all right?"

Kyle was standing next to Felix, staring at the boy as though he had seen a ghost. "They should be all right," he said. "I believe neither of them was badly injured, and I tried to keep their heads above water as much as I could." As Saturos came back to stand beside the kneeling Menardi, Kyle looked between the two. "We owe you our lives," he whispered. "All four of us. The Mt. Aleph boulder hit us, you see, and--"

The sun rose as the rain slowly came to a halt.Felix was still shivering as he tightly clutched Menardi's skirt fabric around him.The dawn illuminated the faces of Kyle's two rescuers. He took a step back, his eyes wide. "What are you?"

Saturos brushed his white-blue hair out of his scarlet eyes. "My name is Saturos, and this is my traveling companion Menardi. We come from the North."

"Don't let our skin and eyes frighten you," Menardi said. "We only wanted to undo the harm we had caused.

"The North?" Kyle whispered. "As in Prox of the North, the cursed land without a sun, where the Mars Lighthouse is? And the harm you had caused! It was your fault that the boulder fell?"

"Hold still," Menardi said, standing up and placing some herbs on Kyle's cut. She quickly wrapped it in bandages. "If I have any say in the matter, there won't be a scar there."

"Tell me the truth!" Kyle demanded. "Was it your fault that the boulder fell?"

Saturos sighed. "I'm afraid so. But let me explain--"

"I don't need to hear an excuse! You could have killed people, don't you see?"

Menardi had heard enough. "You insolent fool!" she yelled. "It was because of us that no one did die! We saved four lives tonight! Four!"

"No, Menardi," Saturos interrupted quietly. "People did die tonight."

Her pink face paled, and she went silent. How could she have forgotten? Hathrok, Penambar, Limilai, Raknohl, and all the others, they were all dead! The curse of Prox had struck again that night.

"So I was wrong," she said. "Allow me to correct myself. No one from Vale died."

"They could have!" Kyle yelled. "In fact, they very well may have! My wife, Dora, my son, Isaac, and Felix's sister Jenna could all be dead!"

"No," Saturos said. "You four are the only ones we found in the river." He walked back to the unconscious Valeans and knelt down, looking over their injuries. "Both have heavy bruises, and the man has a cut on his chest," he called to Menardi. "I think the woman may have a concussion."

There was a period of silence before Felix spoke. "I'm cold."

"I am taking Felix back to Vale," Kyle said. "And then I'm coming back for his parents."

Saturos stood, his eyes shining with rage that Menardi had never seen in him before. "No," he said. "You will not leave."

"What will you do, stop me?" Kyle demanded. He took Felix's hand. "I am taking Felix, and we are going!"

Menardi, too, rose, suddenly understanding Saturos' fury. "You think we can allow you to leave, after finding out that we are from Prox, the cursed land of the North? You know what it is we came here for, don't you?"

"The Elemental Stars, you thieves," Kyle hissed. "You don't understand why we are guarding them, do you? If you fire the four lighthouses, war will be unleashed upon the world! Our peace will end!"

"If we do not light the beacons, it will be the world that ends!" Saturos replied. "We would have succeeded! But your clever ancestors built a trap into the Sanctum. Clever, yes, very clever, cleverer that you and your like, at least."

Kyle rushed up and grabbed Saturos' throat with one hand. "Be quiet," he said.

"Our world is on the brink of death!" Saturos yelled. His temper was getting the best of him again, Menardi decided; it was best to stay far, far away from him when he got like this. "Prox is about to fall off the edge of the world! If we do nothing now, Mars Lighthouse will be swallowed by the void, and then nothing can ever be done!"

"Let nothing be done!" Kyle replied. "If peace is ensured, then that is all that matters!"

"If peace is ensured, then it is all right if the world dies?" Menardi demanded. "It is all right that Gaia Falls devours all in its path? Think about it! You are in the center of the world! If Gaia Falls destroys all, your city will be one of the last to be destroyed. True, it could take ages! But by then, it will be too late to do anything!"

Saturos raised his own hand and wrapped it around Kyle's wrist. "Mars Lighthouse is about to vanish," he said. "After that, Mercury Lighthouse will be devoured. Then Jupiter, and Venus. The world is shrinking! We have proof!"

"I don't care!" Kyle yelled.

"You don't care if the world is destroyed?" Menardi demanded. "What kind of selfish fool are you!"

"You don't understand!" Kyle said again. "The adepts who sealed the lighthouses were sick of the war! They were desparate to end the war that had gone on for centuries!"

"You think we don't understand that?" Saturos asked. "The Sealing Adept of Fire was from Prox, you fool! Why else would our land be so cursed!"

Kyle's mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. His hand fell from Saturos' neck, and he backed away.

"Are you an Adept?" Menardi asked Felix.

He nodded. "I know Cure magic, and I can make earthquakes."

Saturos drew in a breath. "A Venus Adept!"

"Everyone in Vale is an Adept," Kyle said. "Mostly Mars, but we have our share of Venus."

"No Mercury or Jupiter?" Saturos asked. Kyle shook his head, and Saturos sighed. "Well, I suppose one Venus will have to do." He turned around. "Come now. We must be on our way back to Prox, to consult with our leaders."

"How many times must I tell you that we're not coming?" Kyle said.

Saturos sighed. "I do hate to do this, but you leave me with no choice." He turned back around, one hand outstretched and glowing with red flame. "Pyroclasm!"

Pillars of molten flame engulfed the brown-haired man. Kyle fell backward, crying out in pain before the heat rendered him unconscious.

"Come, Felix," Menardi said, taking Felix's hand. "There's a secret cave just through here, where our ship awaits in a grotto."

Felix hesitated. "Why do you want me?" he asked at last.

"Did you listen to our conversation with Kyle?" Saturos asked, picking Felix's parents up and putting each over one of his shoulders. He lifted Kyle into the crook of one arm. "We're trying to rekindle the four Elemental Lighthouses. We need you with us in order to gain access to the Venus Lighthouse." He gestured with one hand, barely even wincing under the weight of Felix's parents and Kyle. "Let's go, before the others see us."

Felix started to follow, Menardi's skirt-fabric still tightly wrapped around him, but glanced back at the river and the massive waterfall. "But, what about my sister, Jenna?" he asked.

"You will see her again, boy," Menardi said. "It may be years from now, but we will return to take the Elemental Stars. Now come!"

Felix still stood, staring at the river and breathing heavily. "What about my aunt, and my uncle? What about my friends Isaac and Garet?"

"Boy, come, or I'll do to you what I did to Kyle," Saturos said, still walking. He shoved aside some branches near the waterfall to reveal a small cave opening. Menardi walked through, and Saturos glared at Felix with rage in his red eyes. "Come!"

Felix finally came, and Saturos followed behind him, letting the branches slap against the rock as he went.

And the sun rose higher over Vale, where two boys still laid unconscious in the grass, soaked with rain and wet with blood from now-healing wounds.


	2. Ch 2: A Voyage into Nothingness

**Chapter Two**

**A Voyage into Nothingness**

* * *

The cave was very dark and reeked faintly of sulfur. Bats squeaked sleepily overhead as they reunited in their groups, fleeing together from the rising sun. From somewhere within the cave, water dripped, causing a consistent splashing noise. Darkness and shadows fell around every corner, and silence pressed in upon the three travelers.

Saturos kept walking, Menardi and Felix ahead of him. Only now was he feeling the weight of his three passengers. He shifted. "Just how far in here is our ship?"

"Not much farther," Menardi replied. "Keep your armor on."

"I can't help it if these two are heavy," Saturos said. "Besides, we need to hurry. The mayor needs to know that everyone else is dead."

He said it so calmly, with such utter indifference, that Menardi wanted to yell, "They're dead, Saturos! They're not coming back, your only brother was among them, and we're lucky we weren't killed as well! If Karst had come, she would be dead now! And your cousin, Agatio! Our only memories were drowned and replaced by these three insolent fools and a naive young Venus Adept!"

But, as usual, Menardi kept her mouth shut.

Felix looked about, staring wildly at his surroundings. "How come I never found this?" he muttered.

"Because, technically, boy, this cave is outside of Vale. You were never allowed out, were you?" Felix shook his head, and Saturos continued. "Besides, it is well hidden. Only very strong men can push those branches away, and only Jupiter Adepts can use Psynergy to whisk away the obstacle in front of the opening. You, boy, are neither of the above."

"Quit calling me 'boy.' I have a name, you know," Felix said.

"And why should I call a nothing like you by your name?" Saturos asked.

Menardi shook her head. Now that the crisis had ended, Saturos was returning to his normal self: indifferent, crabby, and self-righteous.

What a relief! She had been getting worried about him.

"Anyway, boy," Saturos kept talking, "the only reason you're coming with us is because we need you to enter Venus Lighthouse. Otherwise, we would have left you there."

"Besides, we didn't want you running into town and spilling our little secret," Menardi added. She rounded a corner. "Here we are."

Felix followed and stopped. His jaw dropped as he stared up at the ship. It was at least ten times taller than Saturos, with a massive dragon's head looming out in the front of the ship. The dragon was made of polished steel, with red gems for its eyes and several rows of sharpened teeth. The mast towered into the top of the cave, its sails neatly tied up.

Menardi rummaged in her small back before pulling out a small black gem set in gold. "Get on the ship," she told Felix.

"It's huge!" he whispered.

"Get on!" she said again.

Felix shook himself out of his shock and rushed up the plank onto the ship. Saturos followed, walking into one cabin and emerging free of his previous burdens. Menardi was the last to come on deck, and she quickly vanished into the staircase that led to the bottom floor of the ship.

Felix leaned over the side of the ship, staring down into the surface of the water. "This river leads to the ocean?" he asked.

"No, boy, it leads to the moon," Saturos said with a sniff. "Yes, it leads to the ocean, and we're taking you to Prox from there. Prox will be your new home.Don't expect to see Vale again. Not as one of its citizens, at least. From now on, you are dead to them."

Felix pressed his lips together and leaned back. He turned and looked Saturos in the eyes, something even the bravest of men had trouble doing. "You're going to make me help you fire the beacons," he said, in more of a statement than a question.

"So you're smarter than you look," Saturos said. "Of course, you'll only be tagging along. Menardi and I will do all the fighting." The glanced away, his red eyes suddenly distant in thought. "That is, if we are allowed to continue on this quest. After this disaster, who can say?" He snickered for a moment. "They may even send my idiot cousin Agatio in my place. And Menardi's fiery sister Karst! Oh, by Mars, wouldn't that be rich?" He began to laugh harder.

Felix stared at him. "You mean you want to do this? They're not making you?"

Saturos' laugher abruptly died. "Yes," he said softly. "Didn't you hear? Prox is about to fall off the edge of Weyard."

"That's not what I meant," Felix said. "I meant, you volunteered to be the ones to do this? You and . . . Menelday? Anyway, you and her individually wanted to be the ones to light the beacons?" Saturos nodded, and Felix slightly tilted his head. "Why? Is it the glory?"

"It's because Menardi--that's the name you're searching for, by the way--and I are the two strongest warriors in all of Prox," Saturos replied. "True, Agatio and Karst come close, but we still feel obligated." He gestured to Felix as he leaned back against the mast. "You've heard the legends. Prox is a cursed land where no sun shines during the winter. And in Prox, it is always winter. The snows beat constantly down on your face. The wind wraps about you like a cold, wet blanket. And our people are"--he touched his cheek and blew a strand of hair from his face--"marked, so to speak. So none will make the mistake of associating with us."

He turned to the side of the ship and leaned on it, his cape billowing out behind him. "Do you know why the ancient Adepts sealed the power of Alchemy?" he asked.

"Wasn't it to end the war? The Sun War? They teach us about that in history at school," Felix said.

"Well, you normal humans actually do know something," Saturos said, not even glancing back at Felix. "Yes. It was to end the Sun War. Do you know why it was called the Sun War, boy? It was because the power that men fought over so much was called the Golden Sun." He turned back to face Felix, sweeping the air with one gauntleted hand. "The Golden Sun, the light of life in Weyard. You now call it the Stone of Sages. Eternal life, limitless power . . . ah, how men are corrupted by power! They fought, killing both innocents and soldiers, disgracing all they lived for. Prox, Lemuria, Angara, Hesperia; there is not one country that was not involved! Warriors from all over the world killed and fought! And everyone was an Adept then, so Psynergy was often used in horrid ways.

"At some point, one adept decided that it had to stop," Saturos continued. "He was a Mars Adept, and from the village of Prox, no less. He was marked' before his quest had even begun, to signify that he was one of legends. He was the first of our people to have odd-colored skin, hair, and eyes. It is said that he was the living image of fire itself--but I digress. He traveled the world, gathering other Adepts on his quest as he went, and together they sealed the lighthouses to end the war. Many of his companions were lost, and along with them went a large number of the world's Adepts. And the sin that the Fire Adept committed could not have been foreseen.

"So were our people, the people of Prox, cursed. The Jupiter, Mercury, and Venus Adepts within our village were stripped from us. Our one-beautiful land was transformed into a cold wasteland. The Mars Lighthouse itself froze over. And our passage to the rest of the world was sealed away by ice. As we adapted, the legendary warrior vanished, horrified by the suffering his actions had wrought. He unknowingly began the destruction of the world." Saturos pointed to one wall, where a very old map hung. "See that map? Look at it."

Felix walked over to the map and stared at it. It showed several continents bound together in a crescent moon shape, with one floating freely in the arc of the moon. He turned to Saturos. "What is this?" he asked.

Saturos' crimson eyes were narrowed and focused on the floor of the ship. "The world as it was during the time of the Golden Sun. The map next to it is the world as it is now."

Felix studied the two maps for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't believe this."

"Of course you don't," Saturos said as he stretched. "I myself hardly do. Regardless, that's the way it is. The continents have been shrinking for centuries. Lemuria has sealed itself away within a wall of mist, Prox is concealed by a veil of ice, deserts are taking over the lands of Angara and Gondowan, and Indra is tossed about by the waves of the sea. And from here on, things will only continue to get worse."

Menardi emerged from below decks. "The Orb's in place, Saturos."

"Then let's be off." Saturos turned slightly, and only now did he seem to truly notice that Felix was standing there. "You, boy, can go into one of the cabins and sleep. We have to maneuver down this river and through the rocks of the sea to find our way to Prox. Go to bed."

Felix obeyed, and Saturos walked up to the ship's wheel, taking it in one hand. Menardi climbed up to the crow's nest, reaching out and loosing the sails. Red emblems of flame were painted on the canvas.

"What were you two chatting about?" she asked as she climbed back down the mast.

"He asks too many questions," Saturos said. "I was explaining why we're doing this." He frowned at the river before him. "Get this thing going, Menardi!"

She jumped slightly and shook her head at him. "Calm down, would you? We'll be off in just a moment." Waves of white energy ran up and down her body. The ship gently broke away from the rocks of the grotto, and they headed downriver.

Light blinded him as he opened his eyes, and his forehead ached tremendously.

"Hold still, Kyle, I'm changing your bandages." Now Kyle's eyes snapped open, despite the brightness of the light. Felix was leaning over him, carefully unwrapping the cloth that circled Kyle's forehead like some sort of crown.

"Felix!" Kyle sat up, and groaned at the burning sensation that ran up and down his spine.

"I told you to hold still," Felix said, in the tone of voice often reserved for a parent talking to a naughty child. "I'm almost done with your head, and Menardi gave me some ointment to treat your burns."

"Menardi? You mean we're still with those Northern slime!" Kyle attempted to stand, but was pushed back down by Felix. "Felix, let me go! We can still escape!"

Felix finished with Kyle's bandages and walked to the other side of the cabin, where his parents laid. The fifteen year-old was wearing a shirt far too big for him, belted at his waist so it became a tunic. Dark brown patches of leather circled his wrists, and heavy, much-too-large black boots were on his feet. A heavy silver cloak wrapped around his thin shoulders, and his brown hair was greasy and untamed.

"Here we are," Felix said as he rummaged in the cupboard beside his parents' beds. "Flu medicine, cough stopper, fever relief, headache suppressant . . . burn ointment!" He pulled out a jar of putrid-looking yellow ointment and walked back over to Kyle. "Pull up your shirt."

"Didn't you hear me? Let's escape, Felix!"

"Pull up your shirt, Kyle, you're not going anywhere with those burns on your chest." Kyle obliged after a few moments of hesitation, and Felix smeared some of the greasy stuff on his older friend's chest. "Saturos's Pyroclasm was pretty potent," he said as he rubbed the ointment in, "but not enough to cripple you or anything."

Kyle winced. "Can't you be a little more gentle?"

"I'm done," Felix said, screwing the jar shut. Kyle dropped his shirt and stood up, running out of the cabin. Felix, his eyes wide, dropped the jar and followed. "Kyle!"

"Ah, so you're awake, are you?" Saturos asked from his position at the wheel. "How are you feeling?"

Kyle didn't reply, but he did leap over the edge of the ship and begin swimming for shore. Felix ran after him, leaning over the edge of the boat.

"Kyle, what are you doing? We're way too far out to sea, you'll never make it!" he yelled.

"Let him go," Menardi said. "If he wants to kill himself after all the hospitality we've shown him, that's his business."

"Kyle!" Felix yelled again. "You'll die!"

"Let me die then!" Kyle yelled back as he swam. A sudden wave caught him off guard, and he resurfaced hacking water from his lungs. "I have to let Isaac and Dora know that I'm all right!" He continued plowing his way through the icy depths of the Western Sea.

"You won't be all right if you keep swimming like that!" Felix yelled at him. When Kyle kept going, Felix bit his lip and glanced at Saturos and Menardi.

Saturos raised one eyebrow. "I can see the little gears in your head working, boy, and let me tell you, that's not a good idea."

Menardi crinkled her nose. "What could you possibly be thinking, Felix? If you jump in, you could both die! Better to only lose one."

"You won't save Kyle, and he'll die if you don't," Felix stated calmly. Saturos nodded. "But," Felix continued, "there's one big difference between me and Kyle."

"And that would be?" Menardi asked in half-curiosity.

Felix grinned at the two Mars Adepts before levering himself onto the side of the ship. "You _need_ me," he said before leaping off the side and swimming after Kyle.

"Curse it all, he's right," Saturos groaned. "I'm turning the ship around, Menardi. Get the longboat ready."

"Aye, aye, captain," Menardi grumbled, giving Saturos a mock salute and walking to the side of the boat. She checked the ropes that held the single longboat steady, then, as Saturos turned the ship around, she climbed in and began to lower the boat to the ocean surface.

"I don't know what that idiot was thinking!" Saturos yelled. "With all those heavy clothes on, Felix will go under even quicker than Kyle!"

"I'm speeding us up," Menardi said as she began to glitter with white energy. The ship did pick up speed, and in almost no time, they had caught up to Felix and Kyle. Kyle was barely conscious, hacking up more water by the minute, and Felix was struggling to keep his head above water and he supported Kyle on his back.

Menardi leaned over and snatched Kyle from Felix's back, practically throwing the man onto the floor of the longboat. "You'd best vomit all that water up now, before you pass out," she told Kyle. As best as he could, he leaned over the side of the longboat and obliged. Felix grabbed the other edge of the longboat and heaved himself into it. He grinned as he sat down, his hair and cloak spilling water like pitchers.

"Well, it worked," Felix said between chattering teeth. "You saved him."

"For Mars' sake, boy, don't do that again!" Menardi said as she pulled one rope to bring the longboat back on level with the ship's deck. "You could have killed yourself!"

Felix gave her a shaky grin, his lips paler than they had been before and his fingers shaking. "I'm going to have to strip again, aren't I?" he said.

"What is it with you and water?" Menardi shook her head as she finished pulling the longboat up. "All a-deck that's going a-deck," she said. She climbed out and heaved the now-unconscious Kyle onto her shoulder, her face twisted into a scowl. "And now I've ruined another new dress! Great!" She headed off to the cabin where Kyle and Felix's parents were bunked.

Felix climbed out of the boat as well, and abruptly collapsed on the deck.


	3. Ch 3: Shades of Thought

**Chapter 3**

**Shades of Thought**

**

* * *

**

Saturos saw Felix collapse, and almost immediately he dropped his hands from the wheel. Just in time, he remembered that they were still moving, toward land, no less, and grabbed it again. He began turning the ship back around to face the open sea.

"Menardi!" he yelled. "Stop this ship at once!"

She walked back out of the adults' cabin, wiping her hands on her skirt. "But it takes more Psynergy to stop it than it does to keep it going," she said.

"Don't worry about that! We can take some time to recover. Right now, you need to stop so that we can see to that boy!" Saturos pointed with one hand, keeping the other on the wheel.

Menardi now saw Felix. Her hands flew upward to cover her mouth. "By the Gods, what did he do?" She raised her arms. "Stop!" she yelled, and white fire flew from her hands. The ship slowed to a stop, and Saturos at once galloped to the mast and scrambled up like some sort of monkey. As we went, he reached out and pulled on the ropes that held the sail open. Reaching the crow's nest, he tied them back.

"I don't know why this ship even has sails when it runs on pure Psynergetic power," Saturos muttered as he climbed back down.

"Saturos! Hold him!" Menardi said, holding Felix out toward her traveling companion. "I have to perform Wish!"

Saturos scowled as he took Felix into his arms. "But Wish will heal all three of us, and neither you nor I need healing," he said.

"It's the only healing power I have," Menardi said. "Now hold still." She held out her hands, which began to glow. "Wish!" The shimmering white energy flew into the air like water from a fountain and sprinkled over the three. Saturos looked down at Felix, who began to cough.

"I think he inhaled some water," Saturos said. Menardi, after Wish had subsided, took Felix from the blue-skinned man and looked at him. The boy was shivering; his skin was very pale and his teeth were chattering.

"I believe he's been overexposed to the cold water and the cold northern air," Menardi said. "He's catching hypothermia very quickly. We have to get him warm. Strip off his clothing," she instructed, shoving Felix back into Saturos' arms. "Then, wrap him in at least three blankets--warm ones--and lay him near the fire. That will help him warm up. After he's nice and toasty, lay him in bed."

Saturos watched Menardi as she began to walk off to their cabin. "Wait! Why don't you strip him?" Saturos demanded.

"Are you kidding, Saturos? He's a fifteen-year-old boy! He needs his privacy! I'm a woman, I can't go about stripping children!" Menardi continued walking.

Saturos sighed. "You sure didn't have any reservations about stripping him when we were back in Vale!" he called after her.

"Quit whining and just do it, Saturos!"

Saturos wrinkled his nose, then took the boy into the galley. He left for a minute, then came back with four thick woolen blankets. After stripping Felix of his soaked clothes, he wrapped the boy in the blankets and lit the stone fireplace with one well-aimed Flare. For nearly an hour he sat there, watching Felix. The boy's skin was regaining its tone, but his coughing had only gotten worse. Saturos decided that enough was enough and stood up with Felix in his arms just as Menardi walked in.

"So?" Menardi asked. "How is he?"

"I think he's as warmed-up as he's going to get," Saturos replied. "But his coughing is getting worse by the minute."

"Let me see." Menardi took the boy from Saturos, looked at his sweaty face, and nodded. "Yes, he's by far warm enough. I think we've beaten the hypothermia, but something else has set in. Let's see, shall we?" She handed Felix to Saturos and held out her hands again.

"Wait, Menardi, don't! You'll only--"

"Wish!" The white fountain bubbled over them, and Felix's coughing lightened, but only slightly.

"--exhaust your Psynergy supply," Saturos finished.

Menardi grinned at him. "I supposed we're dead on the water for a while, then, aren't we?" She took back Felix. "I'm going to take him and put him in bed. When he wakes up, I'll treat him further." She walked out of the galley and back in to the Valeans' cabin.

It wasn't until hours later, after the sun had set, that Felix began to stir.

"You're an idiot!" he heard Saturos yelling. "A complete and total dolt!"

Felix opened his eyes and immediately wished he hadn't. The lanterns blinded him, and the whole cabin swam as if underwater. Colors were amiss; Menardi, who was putting something cold on his forehead, looked bright orange as opposed to her normal reddish tone, and Saturos was tinted a bit purple. Felix groaned and closed his eyes again. His hearing wasn't much better. Saturos' yelling echoed in his mind, giving him a horrible headache.

"You've caught pneumonia from swimming in the sea," Menardi explained to him, speaking very softly. "And I'm all out of Psynergy for now, so we're dead on the water. Open your mouth."

Felix did so, and Menardi poured a hot, sticky substance down the boy's throat. Felix started to gag, but Menardi put one slender finger on his throat and he swallowed. She then made him swallow two rather large pills that he almost choked on.

Saturos was standing in the doorway of the cabin. "You could have died, boy, and then where would we be?" he yelled.

"Quit yelling at the boy, he's sick," Menardi said. "Yelling isn't going to help him recover any faster."

"Well, yelling sure isn't going to make him worse, is it?" Saturos replied. He walked further into the cabin and leaned over Felix, his red eyes boring into the brown-haired boy. "You fool!" he yelled right into Felix's face. Felix curled into a fetal position and covered his ears, letting out a groan. "Why sacrifice your life for a fool like that man Kyle? He wanted to swim to shore! You should have let him die trying!" His rough-skinned hand lashed down onto Felix's cheek, leaving a red mark. When Felix jerked at the pain, Saturos slapped his other cheek. "Don't do that again!" he screamed at Felix. "Unless you want to die!"

Felix looked up, grinning as best he could with his reddened and swelling cheeks. "I'm not going to die. You need me to get into the Lighthouse, remember?" Another hard slap was his answer. Felix's chocolate eyes began to tear.

"I have better things to do than waste my time with a smart-mouthed Venus Adept who can't even perform Cure Well!" Saturos yelled once more. He turned around. "Menardi, hurry up and heal this crybaby." With a swish of his cape, Saturos walked out of the cabin.

"I have a piece of advice for you," Menardi said, rubbing a damp cloth over Felix's swelling cheeks. "Don't make Saturos mad. He'll kill you if you give him reason enough. He's already upset enough that I made him tend to you after you collapsed."

Felix grinned again. "He won't kill me," he said in a slightly singsong tone. "He needs me!"

"Do you think you're the only Venus Adept in the world, boy? He's more than willing to replace you. Here. Swallow this." Menardi pressed a cup to Felix's lips. He swallowed, but only narrowly avoided gagging.

"That stuff's awful!" he groaned. "What on Weyard is that?"

Menardi put a bucket in front of him. Felix glanced at her, then looked at the bucket. Suddenly, his face paled and he lurched forward, emptying the contents of his stomach into the container.

" That stuff' is something called ipecac," Menardi said, watching Felix vomit. "It'll help you get better quicker by purging any infection from your stomach."

Felix groaned and looked up for a moment. "And what in Venus' name does my stomach have to do with pneumonia?"

Menardi gave him a grin. "I just want to make sure you don't get any sicker. The weather in Prox is not going to do much for your well-being if you're already sick when we get there. You'll need to recover while we're still on the ship." She looked at the bucket and wrinkled her nose. "So much for those pills. Guess I'll have to give you some more." She walked over to the cupboard.

Felix took another minute to vomit some more, then wiped his mouth and stuck out his tongue. "That," he said, "was not pleasant." He shook his head, fluffing out his hair as he did so, and looked at Menardi. "What about Kyle?"

"He got quite a lungful of water," Menardi replied. "I'm pretty sure he's going to be unconscious for a while. Most likely until we get to Prox, and probably even longer. At least that way he won't be giving us any more trouble." She held out two more pills and a cup of something that fizzed and bubbled. "Here."

Felix eyed the cup suspiciously. "That's not more ipecac, is it?"

"No, it's to help settle your stomach from taking the ipecac," Menardi replied. She forced the cup into his hands. "Do you think I enjoy making you suffer?"

"Sometimes I wonder about that," Felix muttered, slowly taking the pills in Menardi's hand and swallowing them. He took a drink of the bubbling liquid, made a face, and drank the rest of it in one swig. "Nasty stuff," he said with a wince.

"Well, it would have tasted better, but I put a sleeping draught in it," Menardi said. Felix stared at her in disbelief, his jaw dropping slightly and his eyebrows raising. She continued. "It'll take a bit of time to kick in, but once it does, you'll be out like a light until dawn.That will give Saturos and I time to recover our Psynergy, and you time to recover some of your health. We're planning to stop at Kalt Island and trade before we head back to Prox. We have some things to trade with the couple--" she stopped speaking. Felix was staring at her plaintively. "Now, what's that look for? I'm just trying to help you recover!"

"I want to go home," Felix said. He very suddenly sounded like a small child pleading for his mother's arms. "I miss Vale. I want to go back." His hands clenched into fists, wrinkling his bedsheets.

"You can't go back," Menardi answered.

"My sister, though, who will take care of her? Who's going to keep Isaac and Garet in shape? And who's left for Old Kraden to teach?" He looked down into his lap. "I want my sister." His fists tightened.

"Don't start sniveling now!" Menardi groaned. "We still have to get to Prox, boy! Go to sleep! You're just upset because you're tired!"

"No!" Felix yelled. "I'm worried about Jenna!" Tears were slowly trickling down his cheeks. "I'm scared! What if she's scared, too?"

"Sitting here and blubbering won't solve anything, Felix. Hopefully, that drug will kick in soon, and then there'll be no more crying." Felix looked up and wiped his eyes on one of his wrists. His eyelids were beginning to droop already. "Go to bed!" Menardi said. "In the morning, we'll go to Kalt Island. And forget about your sister, Felix! You are dead to her, and she should be dead to you!"

"I want Jenna!" Felix's body was wracked by sobs. "I want my sister!"

"Go to sleep!" Menardi said. Felix laid down, but continued sniffling as he finally fell asleep.

Menardi let out her breath and walked into the cabin she and Saturos shared.

"Is the sniveling brat finally asleep?" Saturos asked.

"Yes, the boy's sleeping, though it took some of my special draught to get him that way," Menardi replied, stripping down to her undergarments and climbing into her own bed. "He broke down just moments ago, whining that he wants his sister and his house and all that nonsense."

"Well, I suppose he has aright to wish, doesn't he?" Saturos said. "Imagine if you were separated from Karst and told that you could never see her again, that you were dead to her."

Menardi snorted. "Good riddance!"

"You know you don't really believe that," Saturos said. "You say it now, but if it were to really happen, your heart would be wrenched from your chest. It's the same thing as if Karst had died."

Menardi was suddenly silent as she thought about Saturos' brother, Nephtal. He had been very similar to Saturos in many ways, but had a smile that would melt a woman's heart, unlike Saturos' icy smirk that was often carved into his features. "Saturos, I'm sorry," she said. "I almost forgot about Nephtal."

"It is not of any importance now," Saturos said, rolling over so his back was to Menardi. "Go to sleep. I've spent enough of my night worrying about that foolish Adept. I wish to spend no more of it talking. We go to Kalt Island tomorrow. I wish to get some fish from the elderly couple,and perhaps some cloth. Silks. For my mother. You may buy some for Karst if you wish. And from Kalt, it's on to Prox. So, go to sleep."

"I'm sorry," Menardi said again.

"Sleep, Menardi!" Saturos snapped, then went silent again.

Menardi closed her eyes and drifted off into dreams.

"Good morning, sleepyheads!" Felix chirped. "Sit up! I made breakfast for us!"

Menardi sat up as commanded, and Felix handed her a plate of eggs and bacon. "You're awfully chipper for someone who was suffering from pneumonia only last night," the blonde said.

"The pneumonia? Oh, right, I'm still trying to kick that. I was very careful to wash my hands and not to cough on the food, though!" Felix handed a second plate to Saturos when the blue-haired man sat up. "So," Felix said, "where is this Kalt Island, anyway?"

"Just a bit further west of here," Saturos said before putting an entire fried egg in his mouth. He carefully chewed and swallowed. "There is an elderly couple there that I like to trade with. We'll get some cloth to make you some new clothes while we're there. Possibly some fish. You can't catch fish in Prox."

"I've never had sea fish," Felix said. "We ate fish from the stream a lot in Vale, but never any fish from the ocean."

"You've been missing out, then," Menardi said. "As soon as we're done eating, we'll go. My Psynergy has returned, so I'm ready to start the ship up again."

After they were done eating, they did set off. Felix abducted another one of Saturos' shirts to serve as his tunic, and found his old pair of shoes from a few days ago in Vale. They were practically dry, so he put them on.

After about an hour, they had reached the shore of Kalt Island. Saturos loaded a box with Menardi's healing supplies, some extra blankets and some bedsheets to serve as trading material. Menardi took a smaller pack, full of gold. "In case our things aren't enough to trade," she had explained to Felix.

He followed them onto shore and into the snowdrifts, to where a small cottage was hidden among the hills and trees. Smoke poured from the chimney, and the windows of the cottage were steamed over.

Saturos knocked on the door. "Elders! It's Saturos and Menardi from Prox! We've brought some things to trade!"

A man opened the door. He was by no means elderly; he was only perhaps a year older than Felix himself. He had pale blue hair that fell around his shoulders and aqua-green eyes. His tunic was white, with a blue undershirt and leggings. A violet cape was tossed almost carelessly over his shoulders. His skin was very pale.

He folded his arms and narrowed his aquamarine eyes. "Can I help you?"


	4. Ch 4: Deals With Strangers

**Chapter 4: Deals with Strangers**

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* * *

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Saturos took a step back from the cottage. "Who are you?" he asked the blue-haired teenager. "What are you doing here?"

The teen took a step forward as Saturos took another step back. "I might ask you the same thing," he said, unfolding his wiry arms. "You don't look like Angarans, or even Hesperians. Your hair, your skin, your eyes . . ." His thin eyebrows lifted in slight surprise. "Could you be from Prox?"

"What does it matter to you?" Menardi demanded. "We come here all the time to trade with the elderly couple! Where are they?"

The teenager turned around and gestured to the cabin. "Alas, they are sick," he said. "Both have come down with a nasty case of the flu. I arrived here two days ago and have been treating them since. They're quite ill, you see, and I would not like them to die. The world can learn so much from its elderly." He turned back around.

"So, how did you get here?" Felix interrupted. "I mean, we didn't see any other ships."

The blue-haired teen blinked at him, startled at seeing him for the first time. "Now you," he said, walking over and looking at Felix, "you are an Angaran. What are you doing traveling with these Northerners?"

"They said they need me to"--Saturos suddenly covered Felix's mouth.

"Why he's with us is none of your business," the blue-skinned man said.

"And how I came to be here is none of yours," the teenager replied. "I suppose that will be all? Then I must get back to my patients, if you do not mind. You say you know them, so you are welcome to come in and visit." He walked back into the cabin, leaving the door open. Saturos left his crate on the ground and followed the stranger, his crimson eyes narrowed. Menardi shook her head, motioned to Felix, and also walked in to the cabin. Felix was the last to enter, and he carefully closed the door behind him.

The blue-haired teenager was kneeling next to the old man's bed, changing the cloth that draped his forehead. The old man coughed a few times, then suddenly gripped the teen's tunic. The teen rubbed the elderly man's wrist and whispered something.

Saturos, Menardi, and Felix all stared when a tiny fairy appeared in the air and sprinkled its magic over the old man. The teenager's eyes were closed, and white waves of energy flowed like water over his body.

"Psynergy!" Saturos whispered. The teen's fairy soon vanished, and the old man's coughing had subsided as he fell back into slumber. The teen released the older man's wrist and turned to look at his three guests.

"Why do you look so shocked?" he asked, standing up. "You three know Psynergy as well, don't you? I can see its power pulsing in your veins. I must wonder what business you two"--he nodded to Saturos and Menardi--"have so far south, and what business this Angaran has so far out to sea."

Saturos took a step toward the teen. "That all depends. I have not seen that Psynergetic Power before. What kind of Adept are you?"

The teenager made an odd face, a kind of smile with his eyes while his mouth was still set. "Come now, it can't be that hard to figure out. Would you like a demonstration?" He turned to the fireplace and held out his right hand as he began to glow with Psynergetic light once more. "Douse," he said softly, and water fell from a sudden raincloud to put out the fire. He put his hand down and turned to face Saturos. "If you would be so kind," he said, motioning to the fire. Saturos scowled, but cast Flare to get the fire going again.

"Water," Menardi breathed. "A Mercury Adept!"

The teenager nodded. "Indeed. Only Mercury Adepts can call forth Ply, the sprite you saw earlier. It's a sacred healing power."

"That still doesn't tell us how you got here," Saturos said.

"Ah, yes. The question of how I arrived at this place without even a boat. Well, you see, I have trained my Psynergy for several months, and hence have developed a power of instantaneous movement." The blue-haired teen nodded slightly to himself and to Saturos. "It took me quite a bit of time to master the Psynergy, but now I can come and go as I please."

Saturos' blue face had gone oddly pale. "Teleportation!"

Menardi stared at her companion, then turned her attention to the Mercury Adept. "Teleportation? How did you master that? I've heard it's only possible with a Teleport Lapis, and you can only find them in Mars Lighthouse!"

"Oh the contrary," the teenager said. "I worked hard to master the movement Psynergy after I left my place of birth. I was an apprentice in that town, you see, but I couldn't stand to stay in such a small village any longer, despite the kindness of my teacher. I needed to see the world. And now, thanks to the warp power, I have seen quite a bit of it. Or, at least, this half of it. Gaia Falls prevents me from going to the other side."

"The other side?" Felix asked, his voice slightly higher than normal with his confusion. "I thought Weyard was flat."

"It seems that way, doesn't it?" the teen chuckled. "I don't know what you've been taught, but I believe there is another side to Weyard. Gaia Falls is the rift that divides the sides. Perhaps I'm wrong, and the world is flat. Who can say?" He shrugged. "No one knows. It has been centuries since the beacons were extinguished, so if there ever was another side to Weyard, no one remembers now."

Felix glanced at Saturos, who nodded almost invisibly. "We're going to light the beacons," Saturos said. "As you guessed, we hail from Prox. If we don't hurry, Mars Lighthouse will fall into the rift and all hope will be lost."

The teenager's blue-green eyes sparkled with some emotion Felix couldn't name. "You're going to fire the Lighthouses?" he asked.

"We want you to come with us," Menardi said. "We'll need you to enter Mercury Lighthouse. And if you won't come willingly, we'll force you."

"No, no," the teen said, shaking his head. "I'll come willingly. More than willingly. I also want to see the beacons lit. But do you have the Elemental Stars? You will get nowhere without them."

Saturos scowled and looked at the floor. "We tried to obtain them, but there was a trap in Sol Sanctum," he said. "The sealers of the Stars obviously wanted no one to obtain them again. We triggered a massive storm. Hence Felix here." He jerked his head in Felix's direction. "He was drowning in the river from the storm we caused. We saved him along with three others from his village."

"And you are from . . . ?" the teenager asked Felix.

"Vale, a town at the foot of Mount Aleph," Felix replied.

"I know of Vale. What do you know about the Elemental Stars?"

Felix scratched the back of his neck. "Not that much, really," he said. "They don't talk about them much. All I know is that Vale's supposed to guard them."

"We must talk more when we reach Prox. I assume that is where you are headed." The teenager turned around and held out his hands. A wave of Psynergy engulfed him. "Pure Wish!" he yelled. Fairies appeared over both of the elderly couple, along with the teen, and sprinkled their shimmering powder. When the fairies vanished, the teen turned back around and nodded. "They will be fine now. I was trying not to use that in order to save my energy for teleportation, but since I am now traveling with you, I imagine I'll have time to recover my power. Allow me to introduce myself." He bowed slightly. "My name is Alex, a Mercury Adept from the village of Imil. And as for you three?"

"I am Saturos, and this is my traveling companion, Menardi. We are Mars Adepts who, as you already know, come from Prox."

"And I'm Felix, and I'm a Venus Adept from Vale."

"I am pleased to meet all three of you. I will be happy to help you gain access to Mercury Lighthouse." He frowned. "You do know where the four lighthouses are, don't you?"

Saturos looked away, and Menardi elbowed him. Alex let out a sigh. "I suppose that is a no.' Mercury Lighthouse is very close to Imil. Venus Lighthouse is on the coast of Gondowan. You should know where Mars is. And even I am not sure where Jupiter Lighthouse can be found."

"We were going to ask our elders when we returned to Prox," Saturos said quickly, trying to rub off the idea that he might be a fool.

Alex smiled with his eyes again. "Of course you were. May I ask what you were planning to do when you reached Jupiter Lighthouse?"

"We'll have found a Jupiter Adept by then," Menardi said.

"Or so you hope," Alex added. "Let us go. The more time we waste talking here, the longer it will take to regain the Elemental Stars."

"What about the elders?" Saturos asked, nodding toward the two occupied beds.

"They will wake up feeling healthier than ever before," Alex said. "They'll want to run about in the snow and play like children, if Pure Wish did its job. We can leave them to sleep. They will be fine." He picked up a small bag that had been lying in the corner of the cabin "I keep my money in here, along with some other supplies," he explained. "My weapons, some armor, a few herbs. They're quite useful."

"Are you telling the truth about having been across the land of Weyard?" Menardi wanted to know.

Alex grinned. "Come, now, would I ever lie to you?"

"We don't know you well enough to say," Saturos replied. "Let's get going. We have little time to waste."

Alex gestured toward the door. "After you," he said. Saturos turned slightly to let Menardi pass in front of him, then walked out himself. Felix was third, with Alex directly behind him.

"Do you know why they wish to rekindle the beacons?" Alex spoke so quietly that Felix almost didn't realize that the remark was directed at him.

"They said something about Prox and the edge of the world," Felix replied. "The same thing they were talking about in the cabin."

"I mean," Alex continued, "do you know what will happen when the beacons are lit? Do you know the power that will wash over Weyard like a cleansing wave?"

Felix looked back at Alex with a quizzical look on his face. "A cleansing wave?" he repeated.

"Have you heard of the Golden Sun, boy, and what it can do for us mere mortals?" Alex said.

Felix wrinkled his nose. "Saturos mentioned something about a Golden Sun. Said that because of it, people killed freely in a war for power."

"Perhaps," Alex said. "But suppose if only one person held all that power. Would there still be a war?"

"What are you asking?" Felix said.

"It is not important right now," Alex said, shaking his head, as if he had just spilled an important secret to Felix. Still, he looked somewhat excited. "Just to see the Golden Age of men restored gives me reason to rejoice. To see Weyard returned to its former glory is my only wish."

Felix frowned. "Then what were you talking about earlier?" His only answer was another eye-smile from Alex. Felix started to ask again. "Well, what did you--"

"What on earth are you two chattering so excitedly about?" Saturos demanded as he picked up his box that had been sitting on the snowy earth.

"Nothing. Do not concern yourself," Alex said. Felix looked at Alex to see that his face was back to its normal, calm demeanor. Alex took the lead in front of Felix, who followed at Saturos' yell of "Hurry up, whelp!"

"What was that about?" Felix muttered to himself.

The group hiked their way back to the coast to see a crew of seabirds swarming their ship. A couple of large lizards were digging their claws into the wooden hull and hissing.

"Of all the days to run into monsters!" Menardi groaned. She set her pack down and held out her hands. "Inferno!"

The lizards were hit full-on by her fiery blast, and they turned to look at their attacker. With an exchange of shrieks, they lowered themselves to all fours and charged at the blonde.

Saturos leapt in the way. "Pyroclasm!" he yelled, thrusting his hands out toward the monsters. Waves of lava engulfed the two lizards, pushing them back to the ship, where they made a nice crunching noise as their bodies slammed into the wood. Both of the lizards staggered away from the ship and swayed slightly. One turned his attention to Felix and charged.

Felix yelped and stretched out his hands, though they shook terribly. "Qu-Quake!" he yelled. The lizard was hit by the Psynergy, but kept on charging, seemingly unaffected.

Alex held out one hand and glowed with energy. "Ice!" Tiny lances of ice rained down from the sky, piercing the lizard's thick hide and leaving frozen patches all over its thick scales. The lizard shook its head wildly, but still charged onward.

"Heat Slash!" Menardi cut the lizard down, her scythe glowing with flame as she did so. It roared one final time before sinking to the snow and letting its blood spill out like red paint. Felix turned to see that Saturos was relentlessly fighting the other lizard with his sword, casting a Pyroclasm occasionally. Saturos' battle didn't seem to be going too well; true, Saturos wasn't receiving much of a beating, but it looked like the lizard wasn't, either.

Alex glanced at the blue-skinned Mars Adept and smiled. Felix watched as one of his hands shimmered a pale blue. A jet of water suddenly shot up from the ice-covered ground, sending the lizard flying into the sky.When it landed again, it was soaking wet and looking rather angry.

Saturos stared at where the water had appeared, his crimson eyes wide. "What in Mars' name was that?"

The lizard hissed loudly, its sunken eyes focusing on Saturos. It rose to its hind legs and slashed the air with its claws. "Impressive," Alex said very quietly. "But not nearly good enough to defeat me. Let's see how Saturos chooses to finish you, shall we?"

Saturos leapt forward, plunging his sword into the monster's torso. The lizard started to raise one arm to clobber Saturos with, but the Mars Adept stretched out his hand as he withdrew his dripping sword. "Flare Storm!" he yelled before quickly jumping back. A wall of flames surrounded the lizard, and it fell into the snow, writhing for a short moment, then got back up to stand upon all four of its wobbling legs. Saturos leapt up, jumping onto the lizard's back, then ran his sword through the general area of its heart. The lizard sank into the snow, a red puddle spilling from its two wounds.

"Now," Menardi said, "for the birds." Seven of the thirteen birds flew down from their destruction of the mast to face her and Saturos. Three launched themselves at Menardi's hair, and Saturos was fending off four of his own.

"This is getting quite dull, wouldn't you say?" Alex asked Felix, who stared at him in wonder. At the sight of Felix's expression, Alex nodded. "I thought so. I'll end it, then." He walked back up from where Saturos' shove had placed him. "Saturos, Menardi," he said. "Back off. This will hurt quite a bit if you do not."

"Be quiet! We can take care of ourselves!" Menardi replied, desperately trying to untangle one of the birds from her blonde locks.

"Menardi," Saturos said, barely knocking one of the birds away from his eyes, "perhaps we should let this Alex handle this and see how far he gets."

Menardi grumbled, finally yanking the bird from her hair. "Fine! So be it, Alex! If you believe you can handle these monsters better than we can, then go ahead and try!" She stepped back with Saturos, leaving Alex alone with the monster birds.

Jets of water shot once more from the earth, flinging the birds into the sky two at a time, with one bird taking up a pillar all its own. As soon as each bird came crashing back down to earth, another pillar of liquid shot them up again. Soon, all seven birds were lying on the coast, their bodies soaked. They struggled to rise again, but Alex held out his hand and Douse rained upon them, drowning all of them at once.

The other six birds circled around the crow's nest once before diving down to where Alex was. All six of the monsters were shrieking at the Mercury Adept. Alex shrugged and held out his hands. Sprays of water once again filled the air, but half of the birds flapped out of the way in time to avoid the deadly jets. The sprays slowly began to subside, and Alex's face was beginning to tighten as his power drained away. Saturos saw this and smiled.

"Do you need help, Alex?" he asked.

"No, I can handle this on my own, thank you," Alex replied.

"I think not," Menardi said, snorting slightly as she watched Alex's water blasts grow weaker. "Allow us to interfere, and you'll live. Unless, of course, you want to die by pecking." She snickered.

"I can handle this," Alex repeated. The water jets stopped bubbling from the ground, and Alex instead resorted to casting Douse and Frost time and again. The birds began to attack him in droves, but he continued using his shrinking Psynergy supply to fend them off.

"Step back, Alex!" Menardi said. "It's obvious that you're too young and weak to fend off all of them."

"I handled the last seven, didn't I?" Alex continued, swatting some of the birds away from him.

"Step back!" Menardi repeated. Alex hesitated, but his eyes widened as his most recent casting of Douse withered away into nothingness. He looked down at his hands, and the birds continued lunging at him.

"Alex! Your Psynergy is exhausted! Step back, and we'll show you our skills!" Saturos said. "We also have powers of our own!" He and Menardi stepped forward, and Alex finally nodded to them and took a step back. The Mercury Adept's breaths were hard, and the birds had left several scratches on his face as souvenirs. None of them had quite managed to break through Alex's thick clothing, or his legs and arms would have been bleeding as well.

Saturos and Menardi stood side-by-side, their shoulders touching. Fiery red Psynergy swirled around them, laving smoky trails of heat in the cold Northern air. Their twin pairs of red eyes began to glow as they both held out their hands. Saturos' hands glowed a bright orange, and Menardi's were a dark red. Felix could see it coming; a Pyroclasm followed by Menardi's Inferno.

He was taken aback when both of their energies became a bright red. "Supernova!" they yelled together. An explosion filled the air around the birds, but some of its energy was carried to Felix and Alex. Felix stepped back, feeling like the heat was clawing at his flesh, and Alex winced slightly. After Supernova had subsided, Saturos and Menardi leapt forward, their weapons drawn. Saturos swung his sword in a quick circle, taking out three of the birds, while Menardi eliminated two more with one well-aimed Heat Slash. The last bird flew around in a wobbling circle before crashing to the ground, where Menardi cut open its stomach with her scythe.

Alex stared at the remains of the monster-birds. "What power," he breathed. "What absolute power! I never imagined . . ." Shaking himself from his amazement, he walked over to the hull of the ship, inspecting the spots that the lizards had been mauling. "Will this be all right?" he asked Saturos.

"It will be fine," Menardi said. "There's steel plating under the wood. It was once a Lemurian ship. The Ancients know how boats should be made."

"Well then, let's go," Alex said. "I'm rather anxious to see the beacons lit. Let's not waste any more time." He walked over to the side of the ship and began climbing the rope ladder that extended over its side.

"Alex!" Saturos called. Alex stopped climbing the ladder and turned slightly to look at Saturos. The Mars Adept had folded his arms. "Do you believe now that Menardi and I are capable of taking care of ourselves?"

Alex nodded, though he appeared to be stifling a laugh. "Of course, Saturos, of course! Come now, why would I ever doubt you?"

Menardi kicked one of the monster-bird corpses away from her. "Why do I get the feeling that wasn't sincere?" she muttered.

"I am younger than you, however," Alex continued, oblivious to Menardi's remark, "so my Psynergy reserves have not yet reached their full potential. Not to mention that using Pure Wish depleted my reserves quite a bit."

Saturos narrowed his eyes. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing," Alex replied. "Merely that I still have quite a bit of time to build up my power."

"Do you go so far as to suggest that you are stronger than us?" Menardi demanded, thrusting one arm out to her side. "Have you forgotten our Supernova? My Heat Slash? Saturos' Pyroclasm? Do not underestimate us, Alex!"

"I," Alex replied, "said nothing of that sort. You have misinterpreted me, Menardi. I merely said that I still have a long way to go to be at your level."

"That's better," Saturos said. Alex returned his attention to the rope ladder and finished climbing, leaning over the railing and gazing down at the three Adepts below.Menardi began to climb as well, her scythe strapped to her back and leaving long trails of blood dripping down the back of her skirt. Saturos waited for Felix to climb.

Felix stood, paralyzed, in the snow, staring at the body of the lizard Menardi had slaughtered.

"Such power," he whispered. "I . . . I can't believe this! Pyroclasm, Inferno, Supernova . . . all the most elite forms of Mars Psynergy! And those attacks Alex used! How can it be? How can they have this much power?"

"Whelp!" Saturos called, using his new nickname for Felix. "Get on board, unless you want to stay on Kalt Island forever!"

Felix jumped slightly, then nodded and ran to the rope ladder. Once on board, he stared at the mutilated monster corpses on the coast.

"Surprised that they wield so much power?" Alex asked. "I know that I am."

Felix nodded. "I've never met anyone who can do any of the Psynergies they used! You're pretty powerful as well!"

"I spent quite some time training on my own," Alex said. "My mentor probably knows less than half of the Psynergies I've mastered. As for Saturos and Menardi, I suspect they are some of the strongest warriors in Prox."

Felix bent over the railing of the ship, staring down into the icy waters. "I guess I just never expected to meet anyone like you. You're only probably a year older than me, but you know so much more. Those pillars of water you made were amazing!"

Alex nodded slightly. "But don't distress yourself. People learn at different rates." Felix leaned further over the railing, and Alex frowned. "Felix, are you feeling all right? You're looking a bit green."

Felix promptly emptied the contents of his stomach into the sea.


	5. Ch 5: Self Reliance

**Chapter 5**

**Self-Reliance**

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* * *

**

Felix struggled to get out from under the thick sheets that held him immobile. "Let me go!" he screamed.

"It would be so much easier if you allowed me to cast Ply," Alex said. He was leaning against the inside of the doorframe.

Saturos and Menardi sat on the bed beside Felix, watching him writhe. Menardi occasionally tighthened the sheets on the bed to make sure that Felix couldn't escape.

"No, no, you can't cast Ply," Saturos said. "He got himself sick, now he can make himself better!"

The ship was moving over the water at a leisurely pace, keeping a constant north-by-northeastern route. Though Saturos usually manned the tiller, Menardi could turn the ship on her own if needed. Before they had forced Felix into bed, they had made sure that the sea ahead was clear, though it had already been several hours since then. The moon was rising over the vacant sea as Felix squirmed beneath his blankets.

"All that you're going to accomplish is to make him vomit all over himself again," Alex said. "He's done it twice already. He's obviously caught a touch of the flu."

"He's obviously caught a touch of the flu," Saturos mimicked, twisting his voice so it was much higher than normal. He shook his head and said in a normal tone, "We knew that. He had pneumonia just before we landed on Kalt Island. He probably still has that in his system as well."

Alex raised his eyebrows, something he had been doing fairly often in the last few hours. "Stomach flu and pneumonia. That could be dangerous. Look, Saturos, one casting of Ply, that's all I ask--"

"No."

"He'll only get sicker! If you let me use Ply even once it will ensure that--"

"I said no."

Alex frowned. "Fine then, if you want to deal with a mortally ill Venus Adept, I suppose that's your problem, not mine." He turned, flipping out his cape behind him and walking out onto the deck of the ship. Moments later, Felix did indeed vomit all over his blankets.

"Another new blanket, Menardi," Saturos said. Menardi handed him one, looking idly out the cabin door. After Saturos had replaced the old blanket, she carried a bucketful of bile-reeking, soiled blankets to the galley, where she would soak them in hot water to wash out the vomit.

"If you'd just let me go to the side of the boat--" Felix started, freeing himself from his blankets enough to sit up. One of his gloved hands swiped his mouth clean of his bile.

"You, whelp, got yourself sick by swimming in the sea to save that fool Kyle," Saturos interrupted. "You can make yourself better as well. Cast a Cure spell! You have enough Psynergy to, and you know it, don't you?"

"Y-yeah. . . ."

"Then cast it! It'll make you better in no time flat! I'm not going to let Menardi or Alex get you out of a situation you got yourself into! Learn to take care of yourself. A day will come when Menardi and I will not be there to do your fighting for you!" Saturos leaned forward and rested his hands on Felix's shoulders. "You must learn to rely on your own strength," he continued, his voice slightly calmer. "While you are with us, Menardi and I will do all the fighting. I'm quite sure we'll be able to handle almost anything that comes our way. But what if we are separated? You must know how to handle a sword, how to use your Psynergy as a weapon, and how to heal yourself and your allies." He leaned back again, folding his arms expectantly. "Well, go on! Do it!" he said, gesturing slightly.

Felix nervously clasped his hands together in a prayer-like position. "But what if I don't get it right?" he asked. "I've only cast it once or twice before."

Saturos' eyes were relentless. "Then you will cast it again and again until you get it right."

Felix swallowed and closed his eyes. His whole body began to glow with golden energy, the color of Venus. The energy flow washed over him as he softly said, "Cure." The energy split into many tiny golden beams, flowing into Felix's body, then subsiding. Felix opened his eyes and looked at Saturos.

"I'd say you did it just fine," the Mars Adept said in a rather gruff tone. "Good job." He stood and walked out of the cabin, leaving Felix alone.

"You should feel honored to receive a compliment from him," a voice from nowhere said. Blue energy shimmered in the air, and Alex suddenly appeared on the foot of Felix's bed.

Felix stared at the older teen. "Where did you--how did you--"

Alex smiled. "I can teleport at will, remember?"

Felix recalled Alex saying something like that on Kalt Island, and nodded numbly.

"Now, let me take care of the rest," Alex continued. "You only know the basic-level Cure, and that's not enough by far to take care of both pneumonia and the flu. Hold still."

"But Saturos said--"

"Do you think I really concern myself with what Saturos says?" Alex asked, shaking his head slightly. "Saturos is blinded by pride, and refuses to believe that a Mercury Adept so much younger than him could possibly be as strong as I am. Now hold still." Alex's tiny fairy appeared in the air, and he whispered, "Pure Ply." The energy flooded Felix's veins, and he felt like an immense warmth was overcoming him. After the fairy vanished, Alex gave Felix a slight smirk.

"I'd best be going now," he said. "Menardi thinks I went to get her some laundry soap. If I'm gone too much longer, she'll wonder. Now, get some rest. It will help you recover." The blue energy shimmered around Alex again, and he was gone.

Felix shrugged and laid back in bed. What he wouldn't give to be back home, playing with Garet and Isaac, teaching them how to use their machetes, to go nab food from the inn's kitchens, to chase the stray cats and dogs around town. . . .

Jenna.

To see Jenna again! He didn't want to imagine what she was going through. She was only a year younger than he was, and they had been very close. In fact, he had ended up in the river by shoving her out of the way of a smaller boulder that had tumbled down Mount Aleph's slopes. Did she blame herself? Did she want to die? What had happened to her?

Felix fell asleep with thoughts of his younger sister running through his head.

"I only sent him to get laundry soap," Menardi muttered, prodding the soaking blankets with a stick. "What could be taking him so long?"

Alex materialized behind her, a small jar in his hand. "I apologize," he said. "I was looking in the wrong cupboard for a bit."

She jumped and let out as light yell, then whirled to face Alex. She put her hands on her hips and scowled at him. "By the Gods, what is wrong with you? Don't startle me like that! Ever!"

Alex's expression was the portrait of innocence. "Well, I just thought since I took so long to find it, I would teleport down here."

"Teleport my foot! You scared me out of my wits!"

"I was only trying to hurry."

"Don't," Menardi yelled, "do that again!"

He set the jar down and gave Menardi a sweeping bow. "Of course not, my queen."

"What was that"--halfway through her question, Alex shimmered with Psynergy and vanished-- "supposed to mean," Menardi finished in a mumble.

Saturos was standing at the wheel, slightly turning the ship toward a more northern route. Rocky reefs lined the waters ahead, but a small passage hid itself between the rocks. That was the route to Prox.

"Are we coming along all right?"

Saturos, like Menardi, jumped slightly, and his hands jerked the tiller very quickly out of surprise. He heard Menardi shriek from below decks, and vaguely hoped that the sudden movement hadn't started Felix vomiting again.

Alex stood behind Saturos, his blue-green eyes slightly wider than normal. "Are all you Mars Adepts this jumpy?"

"What, you mean you did this to Menardi too?" Saturos panted, glancing back at Alex.

"Yes, and she had a reaction remarkably similar to yours. Are all you Mars Adepts the same, or is it just you two?"

"Can you blame me, Alex, if you startled me a bit?"

Alex blinked at Saturos. "Oh, dear! I frightened the great Saturos, did I? How on earth did I manage that?"

"Go to bed, you wretch," Saturos said. "We'll be in Prox by morning. With any luck, Felix will have recovered by then. I only hope he's not still vomiting."

Alex smiled. "I'll be going to sleep, then. Good night." He vanished into thin air, making Saturos shudder.

"How I wish he wouldn't do that!"

Felix tumbled out of his cabin and immediately wished he had donned his cloak. The boat was docked at the edge of an ice-encrusted river, while snow whirled through the sky, hitting his face harder than a fistful of pebbles. Saturos and Menardi were using one of the longboats to haul crates down to the ice-encrusted shore, while Alex teleported all over the ship, picking up and dropping his cargo on the way.

"Are you ready to go?" Alex was suddenly at Felix's side, grinning at him.

"It's so cold!" Felix said, rubbing his bare arms with his gloved hands. "Let me get my cloak and I'll help unload."

Alex vanished, then reappeared with Felix's cloak in his hands. "I'm afraid you're a bit late for unloading, though," the Mercury Adept said, handing Felix the garment. "We're just about done. But you'll have to carry your fair share to Prox. Saturos and Menardi are leaving most of their supplies on the ship to take care of later. It's a different type of cargo you and I will be carrying." Alex put a hand on Felix's shoulder. There was a great rush of air, and Felix suddenly found himself beside the boat, with Saturos and Menardi. He stumbled slightly, shaking his head to try to make the world stand still again.

"If he vomits again because of what you did . . ." Saturos' voice had a warning tone in it.

"He won't. He just needs to take a minute or so to regain his sense of balance. It even happened to me the first time I teleported."

Saturos looked at Felix, who was swaying to and fro like a thin reed in a hard wind. "Right," he said as Felix's swaying finally slowed to a halt. "You and Alex will be hauling that into Prox." He jerked one thumb toward a heaping pile of blankets on a long stretcher. "It's not that far, so I've no doubt you can handle it."

Felix, having straightened the world again, walked over to the blankets to take a closer look. Under the thick covers, he saw the faces of his parents and Kyle, all three of them looking pale and drawn.

He looked up at Saturos. "Will they be all right?"

"Of course they will," Saturos snapped, rubbing his forehead with two of his slim blue fingers. "Now just take it! Prox isn't far, and the more we wait, the colder it's going to get!"

Felix and Alex lifted up the stretcher and followed Menardi and Saturos northward. Felix gazed up at the sky as he walked. No sun was anywhere in sight; the whole northern lands were obscured by angry grey clouds that flung out their snow and hail in thick sheets.

"So it's true," he muttered. "There really isn't any sun in Prox."

There was a crowd of people assembled at the village gates. Felix hesitated, but Alex kept on walking, forcing him to as well. The Proxans all looked fairly similar to Saturos and Menardi; their skin was in shades of green, blue, or pink, with an occasional citizen bearing tones of orange or violet. Their hair ranged in any color imaginable, from black to flaming orange to hot pink. All of them had long, pointed ears sweeping back from their cheeks, and all of their eyes were red.

"Menardi! You're back!" A pale pink-skinned girl pounced on Menardi, wrapping thin arms around the blonde's waist. Her hair was a dark magenta, and her eyes were flaming red. "I missed you! What took you so long?"

"Karst, not so tight, I can't breathe!" Menardi gasped, pushing the younger girl back a bit.

"We saw your ship from here," a green-skinned man said. His hair was bright orange, and his eyes were a dark red.

"You didn't have to come greet us, Puelle," Saturos said. "We were actually somewhat hoping to surprise you. Where's the elder?"

"I am here," a gruff, slightly raspy voice said. The crowds parted to let through a chubby man with thick grey hair and weathered green skin. He leaned on a short wooden cane. "Saturos, Menardi, it is good to see that you have returned." He looked at Alex and Felix, who had set their stretcher down on the ground. Felix was busily tucking the blankets tighter around his parents and Kyle. "But I see you have brought some guests with you, and returned mysteriously short of your original twenty." The chattering crowd suddenly grew very quiet, and the elder asked in a heavy voice, "What has happened?"

Saturos winced and looked at the ground. "There was . . . a trap in Sol Sanctum," he murmured. "Raknohl and"--his voice seemed caught in his throat for a split second-- "Nephtal tried to move a statue to open up the door to the true Sanctum. When they did, though, the mountain became a living nightmare."

"Mount Aleph erupted, and storms swarmed over the whole village," Menardi continued, looking down at Karst as she spoke. "All eighteen of the others were trapped in the Sanctum. Only Saturos and I escaped the volcano's fury."

"And as for them?" Puelle asked, nodding toward Felix, Alex, and the unconscious Valeans.

"Except for the blue-haired one, we found them drowning in Vale's river as we passed," Saturos said. "I didn't want anyone else to die because of our mistake. But the tall man--that one, with the short hair--found out who we were, where we came from, what we did, and he refused to calm down. Cursed people from the North had triggered a storm which nearly destroyed his entire village, nearly killed him, his two friends, and their son. He became a bit hysterical. I can't say I blame him, however. If foreigners had come here seeking something and nearly destroyed this village, I would have reacted in much the same way. Anyway, Felix is a Venus Adept. He's the brown-haired boy, there."

"A Venus Adept?" Karst asked, looking up at Menardi. "So he can cure, and make earthquakes?"

"Not very well," Menardi said. "They didn't teach him much in Vale."

Felix pretended he hadn't heard the remarks about him and nodded to Alex. The two picked up their stretcher again.

"And as for the blue-headed one?"

"Alex? He's a Mercury Adept. We found him on Kalt Island. They'll both be useful for getting in the Lighthouses," Saturos replied.

"Excuse me," Felix interrupted, "but these people need to see a doctor. Kyle's sick, and I think my mom and dad might be, too."

"Let them through," Puelle said. "Mekisha, you take care of them."

A golden-haired woman nodded and gestured to the two boys, who followed her weaving path through the snowdrifts to a small wooden cabin and vanished inside. The village elder followed, waddling slightly and having trouble with his cane.

"You arrived back just in time," Puelle told Saturos and Menardi. "Tomorrow is the Sun Festival."

Menardi blinked. "Already? Is it a little early this year?"

"No, no," Puelle said with a chuckle as the crowds dissipated and returned to the village. "You two have been gone for longer than you realized. Tomorrow is the Festival."

"I'm going to play on the rocks all day," Karst said, looking up at Menardi. "What about you?"

"Aren't you a bit old to be playing on rocks, Karst?"

"You're never too old for that!" Karst protested.

Menardi looked up at Puelle. "We must speak with you later," she said. "About Alex, Felix, and the Valeans."

"Yes, that is a pressing subject, isn't it?" Puelle said with a nod. "For now, however, rest. Eat. You look like starved rats. We will hold ceremonies for your companions at nightfall."

Menardi bowed her head slightly. "Yes," she said, "yes, of course. Come, Karst, let's go home." She and the magenta-haired girl vanished into the village.

"Puelle, we are deeply sorry," Saturos said. "All the village's finest warriors dead--we tried to save them, Puelle--"

"Save your breath, Saturos," Puelle interrupted. "If you believe for even an instant that I blame you for the incident, you are mistaken. It was merely a trap. None could have foreseen what happened." He ran one thick hand through his shaggy orange locks. "On a lighter note, what did the people of Vale think of your message?"

Saturos gritted his teeth and looked at Puelle, his red eyes hardened with rage. "They are fools! I told both their Healer and their Mayor what was happening, but they didn't listen! They wouldn't believe a word Menardi and I said, despite the proof we had. We"--Saturos swallowed in midsentence-- "we had to break into the Sanctum, like common burglars, Puelle, because the Valeans absolutely refused to help us. I never thought I'd have to stoop to the level of a thief, just to save our village from the rift!"

Puelle sighed and shook his head. "I worried that it would turn out like this. If we could reach the Shamans, or find our way into Lemuria, maybe they would help."

"But they are not living in death's jaws," Saturos said. "No. I think we must do this alone. If they react in the same way as Vale did, then we will only increase the worldwide hatred of our Clan. We cannot take that chance, lest we be hunted down."

"You are right," Puelle mumbled. He suddenly looked very tired. "I will see you near the Lighthouse at dusk," he told Saturos.

Saturos bowed and followed Puelle into the village as the snows swirled about him in the wind.

The pyre blazed ferociously, illuminating the dormant walls of the Mars Lighthouse and throwing shadows all over the white landscape. The snows had subsided, and the clouds began to part slightly in preparation for the Festival. Black smoke billowed through the icy air, leaving a sharp burning odor behind it.

Felix didn't understand why he and Alex had been made to come stand in the snow and watch a ceremony that had nothing to do with either of them. It was not their Clan who had died in Sol Sanctum. So why was he being forced to stand out here, shivering and still slightly ill?

Saturos and Menardi stood on either side of the younger Adepts, gazing into the blazing fire. Saturos had removed his armor and streaked his face with blood-red paints. He wore a thick black tunic with a heavy gray cloak wrapped around him, and his headband was gone to let his pale hair flow with the wind.Menardi's face was stained with grey and black paint, and she wore a simple black wool dress. Her blonde locks had even been streaked with the dark face paints to leave her hair in a wild grey mess.

Puelle stood on the other side of the fire, a pile of cloths before him. He clapped his hands once, and the already-silent crowds directed their attention even further toward him.

"We are here today to remember those we have lost in the search for the Elemental Stars." Puelle's voice was very heavy and commanding. "In an attempt to save our village, Prox, twenty of our finest warriors were sent to the city of Vale to hold a conference with their mayor and ask for their assistance. The Valeans refused to accept our pleas and turned us away. The twenty warriors, determined to save our village, sank to the level of burglars and attempted to steal the Stars, since they could not receive them willingly.

"There was a trap in the Sanctum of the Elemental Stars," Puelle continued. "Eighteen of the warriors died in the fiery rage of Mount Aleph. We must thank our father Mars that even two warriors were able to make it back to us." He gestured to Saturos and Menardi.

"We will always remember the sacrifice of our brethren," Saturos said, staring into the fire.

"We cannot forget the blood that they have shed to ensure our village's survival," Menardi added.

"Eighteen of our finest men and women died tonight,"Puelle said. The people of Prox were softly crying; one woman had fallen to her knees as she sobbed. "They were your husbands and wives, brothers and sisters,sons and daughters," Puelle continued. "We will always remember them and what they have given to try to save our village." He picked up one of the cloths. "Since we do not have their bodies to burn, we will burn cloth instead to free their souls from this world's suffering."

One black cloth was tossed into the fire. "For Raknohl."

A man fell to his hands and knees, pounding the icy ground with one fist and screaming in anguish and torment. A pale-skinned woman tried to comfort him, but his screams turned to sobs.

Another cloth went up in flames, this one also black. "For Limilai."

A family of blue-skinned villages huddled together in a sort of group hug, quietly crying together.

A third cloth, tinged with blue. "For Zhenika."

A forlorn man fell to his knees, clutching at a ring on his left hand and shaking with his constant tears. His hair cascaded over his red eyes, which were reddened even more by his uncontrolled sobs.

A red cloth this time. "For Actzir."

A girl about Jenna's age leapt forward, falling to her knees just inches away from the flames. "No! No! You're not dead, big brother, you're not dead! You can't leave me!" she screamed, reaching out toward the flames. An older woman pulled her back just before her fingers met the raging heat, and the girl shrieked and sobbed.

Felix suddenly saw Jenna, standing over an empty grave. No, three empty graves. Isaac and Dora were standing over a fourth. All three of them were crying, and Jenna was shrieking the exact same words as that little girl who had just been dragged away.

Cloth after cloth sent a pillar of smoke into the air. Finally, Puelle lifted up the last piece of fabric, an aqua-green scrap of wool. "For Nephtal," he said, tossing it into the fire.

Saturos had turned around and was embracing a shorter woman with the same skin and hair that he had. Both of them were crying, though Saturos' tears remained silent while the woman's flowed with her choked sobs and cries.

"It's all right, mother, I'm still here," Felix heard Saturos say through his thick tears. "I'll always be here."

And Felix realized that he, too, was crying with the villagers. Everyone had lost someone, something in the disaster. Felix had no right to compare himself to them, and he knew it now. Now he understood that they were the same as him, his parents, and Jenna.

Because he had watched that little girl crying.


	6. Ch 6: The Festival: Morning

**Chapter 6:**

**The Festival: Morning (or, The Celebration Begins)**

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* * *

**

Light was streaming in from the staircase when he awoke.

Felix blinked once, trying to clear the sleepy grit from his eyes. A kind elderly couple had allowed him to use an extra bed which had belonged to their grandson before he had been killed in Sol Sanctum. He was hidden under layers of thick woolen blankets and flannel sheets; the whole night had been like sleeping under a sea of covers. The old woman who lived there had been frantic with worries that "the poor little Angaran boy" might get cold in the night that she had drowned him in the warm covers. Felix had tried to tell her that he knew how to sleep in the cold; Vale was a mountain village, after all, so it wasn't like he hadn't experienced winter before. The old lady had been so insistent, however, that Felix had finally given up on his pleading.

As a result of this, Felix had awoken to find that he was practically swimming in his own sweat. His body heat hovered beneath the covers, wrapping itself around him like one more heavy blanket upon his chest. It didn't help much that the room he slept in was underground, not to mention that Felix's bed was next to the fireplace in the stone-walled cellar. The fire had most likely been going all night, as Felix could tell from the smoky odor in the still morning air.

Needless to say, Felix sat up and threw off his blankets almost instantly after waking. He regretted doing so immediately, however, as the air streaming in from the staircase was bitterly cold, indicating early morning. The fire looked to have gone out long ago. Meanwhile, the sweat on Felix's skin grew cold with exposure to the frigid air, and now made Felix feel that he had just stepped out of a cold bath.

He looked down at what he had worn to bed and scowled. His chest was bare, and the leggings he had worn were of a very thin material. His shirt was nowhere in sight, much to his dismay. However, a glance around the room revealed a fresh set of clothing awaiting him on a desk at the foot of his bed.A red tunic, a pair of breeches, and a grey jerkin all were folded neatly on top of the wood, along with a knitted scarf that lay in a curling, tangled heap, like some sort of snake. Felix sighed in relief at the site of the clothing and began to get dressed, barely ignoring the chill that pressed itself into his skin.

As he was finishing with his jerkin, Saturos came down the stairs. The blue-haired man had apparently decided not to don his armor today; he instead wore a sleeveless blue tunic, revealing scale-like particles on his upper arms and shoulders. His headband was still in place, and the leggings he wore under his tunic were thin and flowing. A scarf was messily tossed around his shoulders,and he carried several large silver canisters in his arms.

His red eyes darted momentarily to Felix before refocusing on the stairs. "About time you woke up, whelp. The festival began over an hour ago!" He finished walking down the stairs and walked across the room.

Felix moved on to his boots, pulling one on and wincing as he tried to get his foot in. "Festival?" he asked as the leather boot finally gave way.

"Yes, whelp, festival! The Sun Festival is today!" Saturos gave Felix a glare. He had made his way over to the corner of the room, where a nice-sized pile of the canisters was beginning to form. Only now did Felix notice how many had been there before Saturos had brought down this load.

"What are those?" he asked.

Saturos grinned at him, eyes dancing with amusement, then turned back to the canisters, adjusting them carefully, as though they might break upon touching one another.

Felix frowned and stomped one foot. "I asked what they are!"

"Hormonal, aren't you, whelp?" Saturos asked, turning back to Felix. "Don't you stomp your foot at me. Besides, what they are is really none of your business, whelp!"

"But--"

"If you hurry,"Saturos continued, "you might be able to catch the parade. It starts at Mars Lighthouse and comes all the way through town. I believe you'll like it."

"But what's the festival for?" Felix asked. Being confused always gave him such headaches.

Saturos smirked at Felix before standing up and walking back upstairs. Felix realized he was still only wearing one boot, so he pulled on the other as quickly as he could and grabbed the scarf. After a few minutes, he still hadn't had any luck with getting the scarf to stay neatly tied around his neck. He decided no amount of fiddling would fix it and ran upstairs, hoping that maybe Alex was somewhere close by.

He didn't even get out the door before the elderly woman greeted him.

"Felix, dear! Did you sleep all right? Were you warm enough? You didn't get cold in the night, did you? Did you have enough blankets? The night air didn't get to you, did it?" She began toying with the scarf as Felix himself had been seconds ago.

"I'm fine, ma'am," Felix said, holding back a wince.

"You're warm enough now, aren't you?" The woman's orange hair was falling out of its tightly-wound bun. "I can't imagine how you manage to stay warm with that tiny frame of yours! Look at you, all skin and bone, no meat on you whatsoever--"

"No, really, I'm fine." The wince was tugging at the corners of Felix's lips.

"You don't have to be up yet, you know. You can sleep in however late you want to," the woman continued, as if Felix had never said a word. "Poor thing, I can't even fathom what a tragedy you must have gone through, nearly drowning in that storm that killed so many others."

The mention of the storm brought images of Jenna to Felix's mind, tearing down the wall he had so carefully erected around his thoughts. He looked away. "I'm fine." There was a bit more force in his voice this time. "I'd just like to go outside and enjoy the festival."

"All right, dear, if that's what you want to do, then go ahead.I'll make lunch for you."

Felix fixed his scarf one last time and turned. "No, thank you. I'll find something to eat. Don't worry about me." With that, he walked outside and instantly blinked.

The snow over the ground sparkled like millions of stars piled on top of one another, glittering yellow, white, and silver. The shadows were falling differently that they had been the day before, and there was something warm in the normally-cold Prox air.

He looked up to see that today, no clouds obscured the sky of Prox. Instead, the sun loomed in the sky, shining a bright yellow-white against the sapphire sky. Not even so much as a brush of white clouds touched the infinite blue field above him. Only white sun and blue skies abounded.

"I've been looking for you."

Felix returned his attention to earth to come face-to-face with Alex, who wore clothes of deep blue shades and a scarf almost identical to Felix's own. He was grinning widely, and his long blue locks had been carefully brushed away from his aquamarine eyes.

"I was hoping you'd be somewhere around here!" Felix said. "Saturos was being grumpy as usual when he woke me up, but I knew you'd be nice."

"So you consider me your friend, then?"

Felix was taken aback. "Of course!"

Alex's smile transformed into a smirk. "Well, then," he said, "let's go. I've saved a spot for you near the front of the parade route." His hand came down on Felix's shoulder, and they were suddenly standing in the snow outside Prox,Mars Lighthouse looming over the horizon and casting long, black shadows in the morning sun. Other Proxians stood around them as well, forming a path from the Lighthouse to Prox itself. The two Adepts received some strange looks as they appeared out of nowhere, but the people shortly continued their chattering at they waited for the parade to start.

"Are you excited?" Alex asked, taking his hand off Felix's shoulder. "More importantly, do you feel sick?"

"Yes, and no," Felix said. "I think one teleport's all it takes to get used to the feeling."

"Perhaps," Alex replied. "Though since it is Water Psynergy, I doubt Mars Adepts would take it very well." He smirked again. "Perhaps I should try it on Saturos sometime, hmm?"

Felix stifled a laugh. "That'd teach him!" he hissed between the laughs he couldn't quite swallow.

Alex nodded, then asked, "So I assume you are completely well now?"

"I assume that I sweated it out under all those blankets last night!" Felix replied. "I might have died from heat exhaustion, Alex! The old woman wouldn't take no for an answer!"

Drumbeats announced the parade's approach, and the entire crowd grew quiet. Dancers were the first to come up the snowy pathway, twirling and prancing in skirts or breeches of gold. The male dancers wore no shirts; the females wore loose, flowing red shirts with long, puffy sleeves. All of the dancers had coated their multicolored skin with golden streaks of paint, and the women wore heavy golden earrings.

The dance itself consisted of weaving motions; the women's movements flowed around the men. An embrace, then a spin followed by the women performing quick backflips. A quick thrust of the arms to the sky, the women going into splits, the men spinning around and making arcane gestures with their hands.

Felix saw Menardi's sister Karst among the dancers and realized at that point that none of them could be much older than him or Alex.

After the dancers came several horse-drawn carts, each holding some sort of ornament to the sun. A statue of the goddess Iris, clad in red and gold, a painting of the sun glowing yellow and orange in a red sky, priests and priestesses clad in gold. More dancers. Another cart. Felix was having small things thrown at him from the carts. One hit him on the bridge of his nose; he picked it up when it fell to the ground to find that it was a round red candy.

"Proxian candies," Alex said, holding one of his own. "I've heard they're quite tasty." Felix pocketed the candy, along with a few others that laid on the ground, their colors ranging anywhere from yellow to violet.

The parade ended with a marching band, all of its members carrying gold-painted instruments, from wooden pan flutes to bugle horns. They played a lively marching tune as they passed, all of them wearing short-sleeved golden shirts and long red breeches. A group of baton-twirlers and flag-carrying women followed the musicians, after which the street was left empty.

"Rather short,"Alex muttered, "but it will do. This is, after all, the only day the Proxians have much of anything to celebrate."

Felix put one candy into his mouth and sucked on it. "So now what?"

"I'm not quite sure, to be honest," Alex said. "I suppose we could go back to the village and ask Saturos."

"Where's Menardi, anyway?" Felix asked.

"Who knows? For that matter, who really cares?" Alex said. "She'll find us sooner or later, be well assured. And then we'll have the privilege of hearing her nag."

Felix made a face as he almost swallowed his candy from laughing. He gasped for air. "Don't do that!" he yelled at Alex, who smiled devilishly in response. His hand came down in a fist on Felix's shoulder, and the two vanished again, appearing in front of the inn. A crowd of people was clustered in front of the building, watching the street in anticipation of the approaching parade.

Alex and Felix walked into the inn and spent the next forty-five minutes playing game after game of chess, in which Alex shamelessly beat the younger boy every time. Their most recent game was interrupted, however, when Menardi came storming in.

"And what are you two doing? I suppose you missed the parade?"

Felix popped another candy into his mouth. "Not a chance," he said, tucking the orange sweet into his cheek. "These things are great!"

"Come on, the tournament's starting!" Menardi said. "It's the best part of the day, and Saturos will be fighting!"

"Don't want to miss your boyfriend go at it, do you?" Alex muttered, taking a candy from Felix's hands and moving his knight.

Menardi's face turned even redder than its natural tone. "What are you insinuating?"

"Never you mind," Alex said. He stood up. "Checkmate, Felix." Turning his attention to Menardi, he asked, "A tournament, you said? I'd like to try my luck."

"Sorry, boy, but Psynergy isn't allowed. And I doubt you could lift a sword."

"Menardi! I'm insulted! Honestly!"

"Well, the truth does tend to hurt, Alex. . . ." Menardi frowned at Felix as he stood up. "Anyway, it's out near the Lighthouse in just a few more minutes. And you--fix your scarf, boy." She whirled to leave, her skirt flying out with the quick movement. Felix scowled at his scarf as she left and others came pouring in.

"What is everyone's problem with my scarf?" the brown-haired teen muttered.

Alex grinned at him. "Well, it does look rather unkempt." He quickly raised one hand to his mouth and stifled a laugh.

"It's not funny!" Felix protested.

"Alex, did you sleep well?" A violet-skinned woman had come up to the Mercury Adept. "Did you see the parade?"

"Yes and yes, thank you," Alex said, turning to speak with her. "The parade was wonderful, and I have to compliment you on the candies. I trust they are the same you were chilling last night? They're exquisite."

The woman's violet skin grew red,and she looked down. "Oh, Alex, you flatter me!"

"On the contrary, dear lady, your city flatters me by letting me stay in this inn free of charge.I don't deserve such treatment!"

Felix decided to head for the tournament grounds; Alex's nonsense talk was beginning to make him feel sick. "Alex, I'm going! I'll meet you there!"

Alex waved one hand at Felix and continued chatting with the woman. Felix made a face and continued outside, where the streets were now oddly vacant.It seemed that everyone had either gone inside to eat or headed to the tournament grounds. Felix looked up, spotted Mars Lighthouse's glittering towers, and headed off in that direction. It wasn't too long before he accidently ran into someone.

"Oh, whoops!" he said as the younger girl fell to the ground. "I'm sorry, are you all right?" He bent over and helped the girl to her feet.She had long blue hair against yellow skin, with large eyes that seemed more pink than red.

Felix's heart skipped a beat when he realized it was that same little girl from the funeral pyre last night. Actzir's little sister.

"I'm fine," she said, dusting off her sky-blue skirt and red shirt. "I'm sorry I was in your way. Was Felix your name?"

"Yeah. What's yours?"

"Kiana."

The two stood quietly looking at one another for about a minute before Felix came up with something to say. "I, um, saw you at the pyre last night . . ."

Kiana's eyes closed very quickly, and she wrapped her arms around herself as she began shaking. "I don't want to think about it."

Felix winced. "I'm sorry. I know it must have been hard for you to lose your big brother."

"Actzir was the best big brother in the world!" she said. Tears were starting to flow down her cheeks. "He was my best friend, too! And now all I have's my dad . . . my mother was already dead. Actzir always looked out for me! I," she gasped in midsentence, "I miss him! He would have fought at the tournament this year, but he can't because he's gone forever!"

For the second time, Felix saw Jenna in Kiana's place, sobbing as well for her dead parents and brother, tossing flowers in the river as remembrances, tears coursing down her cheeks from her red-brown eyes.

He hardly realized what he was doing when he wrapped his arms around her and gently stroked her hair. "Shh, shh, it's all right."

"F-f-felix?" she choked, her eyes getting wider as she looked up at him.

"I'll make you a deal, Kiana," he said, bending just enough to be closer to the shorter girl's ear. "Until I leave again with Saturos and Menardi and Alex, I'll be your big brother, all right? You can cry on my shoulder, and I'll look out for you just like Actzir did."

He was even a bit startled when she returned his embrace. "Thank you," she whispered, burying her head in his chest and easily soaking his tunic with her tears. After awhile, she finally pulled away, drying her eyes with the back of her hand and attempting to smile.

"Are you all right now?" Felix asked. She nodded. "Do you still want to go to the tournament?" Another nod. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'll . . . I'll be all right, as long as I have my big brother with me." Her smile was true this time when she showed it to him. He gave her one of his own in return.

"Then we'll both go."

They took each other's hand and walked toward Mars Lighthouse together.


	7. Ch 7: The Festival: Afternoon & Evening

**Chapter 7:**

**The Festival: Afternoon and Evening (or, Of Fighting, Dancing, and Fireworks)**

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"I never realized how far away Mars Lighthouse is," Felix panted.

He and Kiana had been walking for at least thirty minutes, and Felix was beginning to get a bit tired. Kiana, meanwhile, was still skipping ahead, a smile stretching across her cheeks.

She turned around when she realized that Felix had stopped. She smiled, shaking her head and tossing out her long blue hair.

"Big brother! You're supposed to be the big strong one!"

Felix took a deep breath and walked up to Kiana, his breaths still long and hard. "You're just going so fast. Can we slow down a bit?"

She grinned at him. "Whatever you say, big brother!" She continued skipping ahead, stopping every few steps to give Felix some time to catch up. She was always smiling and laughing at Felix's predicament, but Felix would just smile back at his adopted little sister.

They were a way behind the main crowd of villagers, who were also making their way to the Lighthouse to view the tournament. Felix was basically just following Kiana; he had no idea where he was going. For the moment, Mars Lighthouse had vanished behind the mountains they were passing through; it was a fairly narrow range but one that confused him all the same.

"You've been to Mars Lighthouse before, haven't you, big brother?" Kiana asked, slowing her pace so Felix could catch up.

"Yes, but Alex took me there both times, and he can teleport," Felix replied. "I've never walked there before."

"That's too bad. It's a gorgeous walk, isn't it?" Kiana performed a quick spin, holding her arms out in the air.

"Yes. The mountains are beautiful," Felix admitted. The mountains were very steep and rocky, with small paths that wound up the sides in case they had to be used for shelter. Kiana had told him that Prox was often attacked by monsters, and it usually happened when the village's warriors were away. The villagers would flee to the mountains for safety, hiding in rock caverns while they waited for the beasts to leave. Kiana had also told him that she and Actzir used to hike up the mountains together when they were bored.

Felix had decided to become extremely bored tomorrow and ask Kiana to go on a hike with him.

At long last, they came free of the mountains to see Mars Lighthouse looming over them, shining in the sunlight. The cold air of Prox had begun to warm up; Felix himself had even rolled up his long sleeves.

Rows of logs had been carefully stacked one on top of another, forming seats for the villagers. There was a circle of black dust in the snow, and several warriors were doing stretches on the other side of it. Felix noted that Saturos and Karst were among them, while Menardi sat on the top row of the benches, humming idly to herself and gazing off in the direction of the rift. Felix had noticed her doing that often; even in Prox she would sigh and gaze off toward the lighthouse, which hung precariously on the edge of the void. Felix wondered what she could possibly be thinking during those long pauses, but finally gave up on it and took a seat near the front with Kiana.

"This was Actzir's favorite part of the day," she said. "He would sit here and cheer on the fighters, especially Agatio." She pointed to a man Saturos was currently talking with. He was taller than Saturos, though his skin was also a very pale blue. His hair was a silver color with shades of green in it, and he seemed to be built of far more muscle than Saturos was. A thick cape hung from his scaled shoulders, though it was not as long as Saturos' own.

"Saturos was talking about an Agatio," Felix said. "His cousin, was it?"

"Yes. Agatio was one of Actzir's best friends. The only reason he didn't go to Vale is because Puelle wanted someone to stay behind and defend the village, so he and Karst did. I think it's probably better that he didn't go, after what happened." Kiana pulled her legs up to her chest and gazed up into the sky.

"But I'm your big brother now," Felix said. "So it's all right."

"Oh! I wasn't crying!" Kiana looked at him and smiled. "I was just thinking. Since Actzir's gone now, do you think he's in a place where it's sunny all the time? He loved the festival; he said he'd give anything to live somewhere where the sun shone all the time. Was it like that in Vale?"

"Sort of," Felix said. "I mean, it had its share of rain and snow, but it got really hot during the summer. It wasn't sunny all the time, but . . ." He shrugged. "You probably know what I mean."

"Is rain the water that falls from the sky? Isn't it what happens when the Gods are crying?"

Felix cursed himself for assuming that Kiana knew what rain was. He immediately launched into an explanation of rain, thunder, lightning, and other weather he didn't think she'd know about. She stared at him as he talked, captivated by his talk of lines of light streaking through the sky while the clouds growled like tigers. She asked question after question, and Felix was only too happy to answer them.

Eventually, Puelle rose from a seat near the circle and held up his hands. The whole crowd grew quiet, even Felix. Kiana, however persisted, though her speech was now just a whisper.

"I want to see it, Felix! I want to see the rain and thunder!"

"When you're older," he promised. "Maybe you can talk Saturos and Menardi into letting you come along."

Her skin turned orange when she blushed. "No, I couldn't do that!"

"Why not?"

She didn't answer; instead, she turned to watch Puelle.

"Let the tournament begin!" Puelle yelled. There was cheering from the crowd, and Saturos and a blue-skinned, violet-haired woman stepped into the circle together. Shortly afterward, the black dust around them burst into flame, forming a fiery barrier between them and the audience.

"Two warriors shall participate in combat within this ring!" Puelle said. "If either admits defeat, pleads for mercy, or is first to have blood drawn, that warrior will lose! If a warrior is knocked unconscious, that warrior will lose! There are eight warriors in all. Good luck to all of you!"

He sat down, glancing at a paper that lay on a small podium before him. "Match one is Saturos against Virgili! Begin!" Puelle said.

Saturos and the woman raised their weapons; Saturos held a sword, while Virgili held a scythe similar to Menardi's. They exchanged a few blows before proceeding into a sort of deadly dance.

Felix didn't know what to look at first. Glittering metal, twisting bodies, blazing fire around an entrancing battle. Their weapons seemed to wrap around one another like snakes while they spun and stepped about; he couldn't help but remember the dancers from the parade. Saturos leapt back three times, then ran forward, his sword parallel to the ground. Virgili leapt over him, whirled around, and thrust her scythe through the air.

She stopped mid-swing, and Felix saw that Saturos had ducked at the same time as he turned around, pushing his sword point upward as he did so. The result was a very small cut just below Virgili's chin.

She stepped back, wiped her hand across her throat, and showed the bloodstain to Puelle, who nodded. As the fire barrier faded away, she bowed to Saturos.

"You've gotten much better," Felix heard Saturos saying.

"Still not good enough to defeat you," Virgili replied, shaking her head. Saturos helped her to her feet, and both left the ring. Karst and a red-skinned, blue-headed man were next into the ring, and the fire began to rise once more.

"He's amazing," Felix breathed, still watching Saturos as he placed a thin strip of gauze over Virgili's cut. The two were making jokes with one another and laughing as though they had not just fought one another.

"Who?" Kiana asked. "Saturos?"

"Yes. I wish I could learn to use a sword like that."

"Why don't you ask him? I'm sure he'd be happy to help you," Kiana said. She looked around. "Where's that friend of yours, Alex? Maybe he would know."

"I think he's bitter about not being able to enter because you can't use Psynergy," Felix replied. "He's probably still back in town."

"Oh well. His loss." Kiana tugged on Felix's arm. "Tell me more about Vale!"

Felix and Kiana talked through all of the battles except the last one, when Felix looked up to see Saturos and Agatio entering the ring together. The flames burst into life as Puelle announced the competitors and said, "Begin!"

There was no movement from either of the two. They stood still, examining one another with twin pairs of red eyes.

"They're always the finalists, and they always do this," Kiana whispered to Felix. "Though the rest of their fight is different every year."

Felix didn't reply, just leaned forward and watched.

"So,"Agatio said at last. "Another chance to prove my superiority, eh, cousin?"

Saturos chuckled. "Quite the opposite. Agatio, every year we fight, and every year I prove to you that I am the better fighter. What else must I do to prove it to you? Beat you once more?" He raised his free hand and motioned for Agatio to strike him. Agatio did nothing.

They began to circle one another, their eyes still locked in scrutiny. Agatio shifted his hold on his sword, while Saturos raised one hand to carefully scratch his ear. Neither one stopped their constant movement, each one watching the other as if in a moment he would strike.

Saturos managed to outwait his larger cousin, who lunged forward, bringing his sword down vertically through the air. Saturos smirked and almost lazily stepped to one side. A sideways slash followed, and Saturos jumped backward from this one. Agatio's next move was another downward slash. Saturos swept to the side and whipped his blade diagonally to meet Agatio's. A clash of steel meeting steel rang throughout the landscape, silence in its wake as Saturos smirked again and then raised one hand to cover a yawn.

"I'm becoming rather bored, cousin Agatio. What else do you have for me?"

"He's incredible,"Felix said, staring at the two warriors.

"Yes, but so is Agatio,"Kiana said. "They're the two strongest warriors in Prox. Who knows who will win?"

Agatio growled and let loose another onslaught of slashes. Saturos dodged every one, not even bothering to lift his sword to block again. A sweep to the left, a step to the right, a leap backward; the warrior's waltz had begun again, ensnaring all who watched. Agatio had almost forced Saturos up against the wall of fire, but Saturos leaped upward, performing a flip in the air as he launched over his cousin's head. Agatio turned and ran at him as he landed, using the same parallel-blade technique Saturos had tried on Virgili.Saturos turned around and dashed to the side just in time.

As Agatio's blade slid by his ear, Felix heard Saturos chuckle. "Almost had me there, cousin."

Agatio's smirk looked remarkably similar to Saturos'. "Correction. I do have you." In an instantaneous movement, he flipped his sword and brought it toward Saturos' skull. As Saturos ducked, Agatio's free hand flew into Saturos' gut. Saturos' eyes widened as spit flew from his mouth, and he fell to his knees as Agatio stepped back. A weak rasp emerged from his throat.

"I know you're not done yet, so don't play with me, cousin," Agatio said. "You can get up. I know you can."

A whining gasp. Saturos had gotten the air knocked out of him with Agatio's blow.

"He fought dirty!" Felix hissed from his seat.

Kiana shook her head. "No, warriors can use their fists as well as their weapons, just not Psynergy. He was well within the rules, even if that was a bit of a cheap shot. Don't worry. Saturos just needs to get his breath back, and then he'll be on his feet again."

Saturos did rise from the ground only moments later, though his breaths were still forced and thick. He raised his sword. "Well, I guess it's time to give you that beating now." His voice was raspier than his breaths.

"If you can," Agatio said, raising his own sword. Holding it parallel to the ground, he stretched out one arm so it ran along the length of his blade. His fingers on that hand were outstretched as well, and his face was stained by that nasty smirk of his. His sword-arm pulled into a sharp angle, bringing the swordpoint to meet his fingertips before he finally rushed at Saturos. Saturos once again rushed to one side, spun on his heels, and gave his sword a quick swing.

Blood appeared on Agatio's cheek, stopping him in his tracks.

Agatio rose from his bent position, wiped his fingers over his cheek, and held it up for Puelle to see. The fire died at once, and Agatio turned to face Saturos.

"I thought my skills might have heightened, but it seems I was wrong to assume that," he said. "Well fought, cousin." He and Saturos shook hands.

"The champion for the third consecutive year is Saturos!" Puelle yelled. The villagers broke into applause, rising to their feet and cheering. Saturos turned and waved, the blood from Agatio's fingers now on his hand as well. He was smiling, and Felix leaned back and let out a breath, hardly realizing that the tournament had taken hours off of the day. Kiana brought this to his attention by standing up and pulling him to his feet.

"Come on, Felix! There's still loads to do before nightfall!" Before he knew it, he found himself being dragged back through the mountains toward Prox.

"Why, what happens at nightfall?" Felix managed to ask. Kiana looked back at him and giggled.

"The dance, silly!"

"Remind me again why I'm doing this."

Felix was standing against the wall, holding his arms out and letting Kiana "adjust" his tunic. He had been relieved of his scarf at last; Kiana had called it an eyesore and chucked it into a snowdrift.

She had led him to her house, where her father had fed them both and where Felix had found his parents resting downstairs with Kyle. Kiana and her father had volunteered their house to hold the Valeans; they had even given up their own beds in exchange for futons that could be easily taken out and put away. Kyle and Felix's parents showed no signs of stirring, though Kiana said that they had been showing constant improvement.

Meanwhile, while his parents enjoyed the luxury of sleep, Felix was stuck going to some sort of evening dance with Kiana. She had insisted on it; Actzir always used to take her and dance all night long with her under the stars, she said, and this was the only night in the year that the sky was clear enough to even see the stars, and Felix was her new big brother, and she loved to dance, and she couldn't just go alone, and--

At that point he had agreed, because he was getting a headache from listening to all her reasons.

"You're doing this," Kiana said through the pins in she held in her teeth, "because you're my big brother and I asked you ever-so-nicely. Right?"

"Right, right," Felix sighed. He struggled slightly. "Are you done yet?"

"No, and the less you squirm, the less time it'll take. There! Now I'm done!"She stepped away, admiring her work. "Now you'll be able to move a lot more while you're dancing! There's just one finishing touch!" She ran off downstairs, leaving Felix to look over his tunic and wonder just what was different about it.

When she returned, an ornate gold-and-red mask was over her eyes and nose, tied around the back of her head. Her light red eyes gazed out at him from under flame-shaped accents, and she was smiling widely, holding something behind her back.

"Kiana, what are you wearing?"

"A mask!" she replied in that bird-like chirp of hers. "Everyone wears them to the dance. It's kind of a rule, I think."

Felix frowned. "So if it's a masquerade, then I can't go?" He could barely restrain himself from sounding hopeful.

"Don't be silly!" Kiana giggled. "I have a mask for you, too!" She brought her hands out from behind her back to reveal a green wooden mask resting in them. It was painted with red and blue over the eyeholes, which were very small. Felix took it and inspected it carefully; it was a little too big for him, but it would do, he supposed.

"That was Actzir's mask," Kiana said. Felix's eyes snapped from the mask to her face, and he stared at her, trying to discern what expression lurked under her mask. Nothing came through. "I want you to have it," she said, gently pushing it further into his hands.

"Are you sure? I mean, if it was Actzir's . . ."

"Don't be silly!" Felix had noticed that she said that a lot. "It's yours now! After all, you are my new big brother, aren't you? Come on, put it on! We'll be late if you take much longer!"

Felix did as requested, putting the mask over his eyes and gazing out at Kiana as he reached back and tied it around his head. The straps he had tied fit conveniently behind his ears, and his hair was still free-flowing and loose, despite the strap that ran all around his head. With one hand, he pulled his long bangs out from under the mask. It fit him almost perfectly; Felix had to wonder just how old Actzir had been, as it was only a bit too large for him.

"How do I look?"he asked Kiana.

"Like a real Proxian!" she said. "All you have to do is roll down your tunic sleeves, put your jerkin back on--you'll want to anyway, it gets really cold--and wear some gloves, and cover up your ears with your hair," she adjusted his hair as she said that, "and there! You can't even tell that you're not from Prox!"

"Thank you, Kiana." The wood muffled his voice. Somehow, Kiana had sensed that he hated being different, that he couldn't stand the way everyone pampered him like he was some sort of prince. He was a person, not a doll, but the Proxians rarely saw Angarans and made that all too clear in the way they treated him.

Kiana stared at him for a moment, then shook her head and smiled. She really did look just like Jenna when she smiled. "Hurry, Felix. We'll be late."

He followed her to the center of town, where fires blazed and drums beat heavily. Flutes and harps wove in and out of the heavy rhythm the drums set down, with a violin and guitar as well. All the Proxians were out, each one of them wearing a unique mask. They danced with one another; waltzes, tangos, and other dances Felix had never seen before in his life.

The music began a new tune, a quick waltz. Felix decided he'd go stand and look at the Lighthouse.Nobody would want to dance with him anyway.

Saturos ran by, carrying armfuls of those same silver canisters Felix had seen earlier.

"Felix, will you dance with me?" He looked down to see Kiana, rubbing one foot in the snow and gently tugging on his sleeve.

"Why don't you go dance with someone else, Kiana? There are plenty of guys around."

"I can't ask them. They'll say no." She looked down. "I'm scared to. And you're my big brother, so you have to dance with me at least once."

So she was scared to ask the boys to dance? That was all right. Jenna had been much the same way.

Despite himself, Felix smiled. He bent in a low bow, sweeping one hand out behind him while keeping the other at his waist. "Fair maiden, may I have the honor of a dance with you?"

She turned orange again. "Felix, you're embarrassing me!" Rubbing her cheeks with her hands, she shook her head and laughed. "But of course I'll dance with you!"

They took to the floor. Felix had never been good at dancing, but he found that Kiana, unlike most girls he had danced with, was very easy to lead. They danced four waltzes in a row before Kiana began teaching him a Proxian dance. It involved lots of spins and circles; the men would spin the women again and again while rotating constantly, incorporating twists and swings into the routine as they pleased. They tried the dance once, but both of them ended up on the floor in hysterical laughter.

"That's quite a beautiful partner you have there, Felix." Felix looked up to see a masked man standing over him. His hair gave him away.

"Alex, where were you all day? You missed the tournament; it was great!" Felix stood and helped Kiana to her feet.

"Before anything," Alex interrupted, "I don't believe I've met this lovely lady." He swept a bow before taking Kiana's hand and kissing it. "My name is Alex, from Imil. And you are?"

She was very, very orange. "Kiana."

"It is very nice to meet you, Kiana. I'm only sad that I couldn't do so sooner. Would you like to"--Before Alex could finish his sentence, a red-headed Proxian girl tugged on his sleeve as the band started another waltz. "Forgive me. This lady wants a dance." He turned and walked off with the girl, smiling and talking with her.

"Another dance?" Felix offered. Kiana nodded and tucked her head into his shoulder, most likely to hide the orange she blushed. They waltzed again, but halfway through there was an explosion in midair. Even the band stopped playing to let the dancers admire the fire in the sky.

They were like flowers blooming in the night sky, all in colors of red and gold. Green, blue, orange, Felix had never seen anything like it. Smoke billowed from the place where they glowed, and a shower of embers fell from the sky like the Proxian snow. Felix stared at the sky-flowers with his mouth hanging open behind the mask.

Beautiful.

"Kiana," he whispered. "What are those?"

"They're called fireworks! Haven't you seen them before?" Kiana pulled closer to him. "They're little sparks that explode in the air. I think we Proxians invented them, so I guess it's no wonder you haven't seen them."

Felix stood transfixed, his eyes wide and shining as the fireworks left their smoky stains in the sky. "So that's what was in those things Saturos had,"he muttered. "They're beautiful!"

"Well, now you've seem Proxian rain," Kiana said. "A rain of embers. So in return, you have to show me Angaran rain, all right?"

He nodded, only half-aware of what she had said.

After the fireworks had faded, they went on dancing until late in the night, when the dark clouds were looming over them, threatening to bring froth their ice and snow at any time. Felix escorted Kiana home, then went back to the old couple's house and barely managed to pull off his mask before falling asleep.

And bright flowers of fire bloomed in his dreams.


	8. Ch 8: The Cold Winds of Despair

**Chapter 8: The Cold Winds of Despair**

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Time was an interesting thing.

In less than a year, Felix had grown taller and stronger, his thin muscles building as he worked daily to try and learn swordsmanship. His hair was longer as well; his once-short ponytail had grown into an impressive brown mane like a lion's, framing his face and hiding his eyes. He had even taken to shaving the small amounts of facial hair that he grew.

Kiana, meanwhile, had become beautiful. Her wiry frame was beginning to fill out as she grew taller and thinner, catching up to her overgrown hands and feet. She had become a gorgeous young woman, developing curves that many of the other girls were jealous of. She had let her hair get longer, often letting it hang and sweep against her hips as she walked. She had also begun wearing some substance Felix had seen Jenna use from time to time. It was fairly foreign to him; all he knew was that girls wore it on occasion to make themselves look nice or something like that and that the stuff smelled awful. Kiana also managed to cover up the stink of what she called "cosmetics" using something else she called perfume that was just a bit too flowery for Felix's tastes.

He had finally decided that he'd never understand women.

Alex seemed to be a different story; he had gone out with some of the Proxian women, though he told Felix he rather fancied being by himself. Felix didn't doubt that he might have even gone with Karst on one of these dates of his; he had become rather popular with the young ladies of the village.

Tomorrow was the second Sun Festival since Felix had arrived, and after that, the group was planning to head to Atteka.

They had talked to Puelle last week about what they should do. Should they head straight to Vale, and then look for the Jupiter Adept they were in such desperate need of? Or should they hunt one down first and go on from there?

Puelle, in turn, had turned down both ideas, instead suggesting that they go to Contigo in Atteka. He recalled something about the blood of the Anemos running in Contigo, and the Anemos were the Jupiter Adepts of legend. Perhaps, he had reasoned, there would be some Jupiter Adepts in the little village. Along with that, it was fairly close to Jupiter Lighthouse according to the elder's maps. They'd kill two birds with one stone, checking for Jupiter Adepts at the same time they took a look at Jupiter Lighthouse. Saturos and Menardi had agreed, thinking perhaps the people of Contigo would be more receptive to their mission than those of Vale had been. Felix had no disagreements with going; he had always wanted to see all of Weyard. Alex hadn't been there to vote, and, as Saturos said, "It's not like we should care for that blue-headed dolt's opinion anyway."

Felix had decided to meet Kiana today and have a picnic with her in the mountains. It had been a long while since any monsters had attacked, and Felix knew that Saturos, Menardi, and Alex could fight any beasts off, even without the help of Agatio and Karst, who were also mighty warriors.

He was currently headed to Kiana's house, hoping to have a short visit with his parents before heading to the mountains. Only two months ago, they had come out of their comas into amazingly fast recovery, along with Kyle. They had suffered short-term amnesia from the head wounds they had suffered so long ago in Vale. Kyle, luckily, had forgotten the seawater plunge he had taken on the way to the small village. He was still very unnerved about being in the "cursed North," as he called it, but had begun to make friends with Kiana's father and some of the other villagers. He was even growing a bit fond of Saturos, chatting with him whenever he came by. Felix was glad to see that the three adults were beginning to see the Proxians as he did: as real people. Saturos had told him what had happened when the group had first entered Vale, and Felix almost felt ashamed to be from that village. How could anyone be so blind as to deny what lay before their eyes?

Before he knew it, he was standing before Kiana's door. A picnic basket swung in one hand, while the other was raised. With a flick of his wrist, he knocked three times on the wooden door.

Kiana answered and smiled when she saw the face of her visitor. "Felix! I was wondering if you'd come by today!" She leapt up, wrapping her skinny arms around his neck and smiling.

"Easy, girl!" There was another thing he liked about time; it had allowed his voice to crack and deepen. "If you're going to do that, at least let me put this basket down first so I don't spill food all over the snow!"

She squealed. "Food? Felix, do you mean that we're going on a picnic?"

He threw her a wink. "Exactly."

She released him, giving him a moment to put down the basket before spontaneously throwing herself at him again. "Oh, Felix, how did you know? It's what I've been wanting to do for months!"

"Well, it's not snowing very hard today, and I knew you liked going up to the mountains, so I thought . . ." He shrugged.

A man with sand-brown hair over Angaran features emerged from the staircase. "Ah! Felix!"

"Hello, Kyle!" Felix called, pulling Kiana upward and carrying her into her own home. "How are you today?"

"A bit hungry, but other than that, fine," Kyle laughed. "Your parents aren't up yet, I'm afraid. Still a bit early for them."

"But it's almost midday!" Felix exclaimed, putting Kiana back on her own feet, despite her protests.

"They've been helping prepare for this Festival for days," Kyle said. "They're probably just a bit exhausted. It sounds like it's going to be fun."

Recalling last year's festival, Felix grinned. "You have no idea, Kyle."

"I'll have to see, won't I?" the other man asked with a gruff chuckle. "Well, you two, get going. You've got a picnic to go on! You'd best get all the time together you can, seeing as Felix is leaving in two days."

"To get the Elemental Stars," Felix sighed. A moment of pain and conflict flashed in Kyle's eyes.

"You know, when you do go to Vale, you must bring Isaac back to Prox to see me!" Kyle said. "And Dora! And Jenna, of course. She'll want to see her parents after so long."

Felix smiled. "Well, it has been a year since we arrived here, and according to Puelle's math, when we arrive in Vale it will have been three years since the boulder fell."

"Three years," Kyle said. "I wonder if Isaac even remembers me?"

"I'm sure he does. How can a boy forget his father?" Felix said.

"Well, do you promise?" Kyle asked. "Do you swear that you'll bring Isaac, Dora, and Jenna back with you?" He held out his hand.

"If they do not want to come, there's nothing I can do about it," Felix warned.

"Of course, of course. I mean if they are willing," Kyle replied. Felix smiled and took Kyle's hand, and the two shook on it.

"Now, we'd best be going," Felix said.

"Of course! Dear me, I shouldn't keep you so long. Have fun, you two!"

Felix picked Kiana back up in his arms and backed out of the door, nodding to Kyle. Kiana threw one arm into the air and waved, calling, "So long, Mr. Kyle!" Kyle smiled and waved at both of them, gently shutting the door as they left.

"So just where in the mountains are we going?" Kiana asked.

"Why don't you pick a place? You know them much better than I do."

"Oh, just about anywhere's fine!" She leapt out of his arms and skipped toward the mountains as he picked up his picnic basket.

Kiana's father came running up, his eyes wide. "Run! Go to the mountains!" he said, his breath supply dangerously short.

"Jykro?" Felix muttered, calling the orange-skinned man by name. "We are going to the mountains. What's wrong?"

Jykro's eyes were wide with fear; other villagers were running by the small hill his house sat upon. "There are monsters!"

"Well, there's no need to worry about that," Felix replied. "I'm sure Saturos and Menardi can handle--"

Jykro was wildly shaking his head. "No! They're-- they're Grand Chimeras--" Something leapt onto his beck, shoving him down into the snow and digging silver claws into his back. Jykro screamed wildly as the creature mauled him. His long silver hair was soon stained by his blood as the creature dug a snarling lion snout into his skin. It turned for a moment and snarled at Felix and Kiana, as if they might take its prey at any moment.

Felix had heard of Grand Chimeras before, but had never seen one up close. It was a blue-furred animal with a massive white mane around three necks. One head was like a goat's, with a short snout and long silver horns. The second was a falcon's head, all navy feathers with beady red eyes and a sharp, hooked beak. The third head, that of a lion, was still buried deep in Jykro's back, its silver fangs glistening with saliva and the Proxian man's blood. Its front legs ended in not paws, but talons, and it had a hissing snake for a tail. Two dark blue, batlike wings spread from its beck, just behind its mane.

It growled at them, sounding far too much like a lion for Felix's liking. What was a Grand Chimera doing here? They hadn't attacked the village in all the time Felix had been there, but now everything seemed to be changing.

Kiana drew close to Felix, screaming and turning away from the bloody sight of her dead father.

The Chimera leapt at them, leaving Kiana's father lying in a pool of blood in the crisp snow. Its jaws snapped hungrily as it charged at them. A sudden jet of water exploded from the ice-covered ground as Alex appeared in a shimmer of blue light, glowing with Psynergy and holding his hands outward. The Chimera flew skyward, propelled by Alex's magical attack.

"Alex!" Felix yelled. "What's going on? How did they get here?"

"The Grand Chimeras came from near the river! The Firebirds, however, are from the Lighthouse!" Alex replied, keeping his concentration on the Chimera. "Saturos thinks they must be running low on food--neither of these species have ever attacked Prox before!"

"Firebirds?" Felix looked up to see a few violet-feathered birds swarming in the air, their beaks covered in blood. While Alex distracted the Chimera, the birds dove to Jykro's body and began tearing it apart with their sharp talons. Felix drew back, covering Kiana's eyes with one hand.

"Saturos, Menardi, Agatio, and Karst are also fighting," Alex said, "but it's going to take some work to beat these monsters off! Get going!"

Felix and Kiana didn't move until Alex turned around and let his attack momentarily fade, his blue eyes full of fury and desperation. "Go! Now!" He pointed toward the mountains, then turned around just as the Chimera lunged at him. He pulled a sword from a sheath on his belt and quickly began battling.

"What about Kyle and my parents?" Felix whispered.

Stone pillars erupted from the ground, blocking the door to Kiana's home. The ground near the window also rose into a sort of wall, but not before Felix saw Kyle standing there, his eyes closed as golden Psynergy flowed around his body.

"They'll be fine!" Alex yelled, standing before the Chimera with his sword drawn. "You must go, or you'll be in greater danger!"

Felix picked Kiana up and ran, leaving the food from the picnic basket scattered in the snowdrifts. He leapt off the hill and sprinted through the snow, hoping that Alex and the others would be all right.

He was running with the rest of the Proxians toward the mountains, Kiana in his arms. There were sharp spikes all around the foot of the mountains, laid there to deter the monsters from climbing after them. The paths into the mountains were steep and icy, and it was much colder in their heights than it was in Prox.

Felix began to wish that he had worn long sleeves and gloves today, but he had grown so immune to the cold that he hadn't even thought about it. Who could have anticipated Chimeras and Firebirds attacking in the same day, when neither species had ever attacked the village before?

He remembered Jykro's mangled body and felt some strange emotion building in him. He wasn't strong enough. If he had been just a bit stronger, he could have fought off the Chimera instead of leaving it to devour the helpless man. He wanted to return to the village, to fight and prove that he was strong, that he could save people.

But right now, Kiana was his priority.

She was limp in his arms, not crying, but not speaking either. He held her tighter against him as he climbed up the slopes, toward a high cave that would be just big enough for both of them.

"Kiana, are you all right?" he whispered, wrapping his arms tighter around her to protect her from the cold.

"My father, Felix . . ." she said in a quavering whisper, but could continue no further. She remained silent, her eyes wide in her pale face. She shook, but did not give way to sobs or screams.

They soon reached the cave, and Felix lowered Kiana to the ground with the gentle touch that only a family member could have. She pulled into a fetal position against the cave wall, and Felix sat down next to her. He looked around for a moment, then gathered some small branches from the cave walls, where mice and other creatures had built nests out of them. Arranging them before him, he placed one hand on Kiana's shoulder.

"Could you make a fire? It might cheer you up a bit, and I know it would keep you from getting cold." He motioned to the pile of sticks. Kiana looked up and pointed one finger at the wood, whispering a Flare spell. The branches caught fire at once, and she returned to her previous position of isolated silence.

The snow was still very soft upon the sky outside. The wind was beginning to pick up, and a storm was brewing in the distance, but Felix was only worried about keeping his sister safe and warm.

She curled against him eventually, still not crying. She rested her head on his chest, her eyes closed.

"Was this what it was like for you when you got separated from your village?" she asked.

"Sort of," he replied, "but not nearly as bad as what you're going through. My parents are still alive. It was more like a sense of longing than a sense of loss. No one close to me died"--he remembered Jenna-- "not really, anyway. But it's sort of like that, because I was told I would never see them again."

Kiana shook her head slightly. "I'm scared, Felix."

"I know," Felix whispered. "I am as well."

"You don't think they're going to . . . come after us, do you?"

"I hope not, Kiana." His mind was filled with some sort of new sorrow--if he was stronger, she wouldn't need to be afraid. Stirred together with his frustration at not being able to save Jykro, this feeling made Felix believe he was an absolute weakling.

After a pause, Kiana opened her eyes and looked up at him. "You can't blame the animals, you know. It's not their fault that the North is so desolate. They were just hungry. It doesn't happen much, but you can't blame the animals for needing food. Or for taking villagers as prey. They don't know what some people feel when other people die."

"But, Kiana," he protested, "they killed your father."

She closed her eyes again and gently grasped at Felix's tunic with shaking hands. "I know," she said. "That's what I don't understand. Why did it have to be my father? He was all I had left."

Felix was amazed that she still did not cry. He pulled her upward into a tight embrace and rocked her against his body, humming a soft melody his mother had sung to him as a lullaby years ago.

For a long time they sat there, gazing at the fire. Felix could her the distant roars of the Chimeras, the shrieks of the Firebirds, and occasionally a battle cry from one of the Proxian warriors or Alex.

After awhile, everything went silent. He and Kiana both sat up, looking out of the cave in hopes of news coming to them. Nothing came, and the fire slowly died.

"Do you think the monsters are gone now?" Kiana asked after a few minutes, her voice still shaking. Felix couldn't blame her for being afraid. The image of her father's mauled body was stained into his own mind like blood: thick, horrid, ugly, and hard to get rid of. These beasts couldn't be commonplace, to make it past Saturos and Menardi.

Felix had a fleeting thought that they might be dead as well, and shuddered.

He remembered what Kiana had said about the beasts running short of food and shook all his ugly thoughts away. They were just animals. They didn't have any idea of the pain they had caused. It was just as Kiana herself had said.

"I think they're gone, all right," he said, poking his head out of the cave's entrance and glancing around. He could see the other villagers; they had already climbed down from the mountains and were heading back for the village. He nodded and crawled out of the cave, reaching back in to help Kiana. "They're gone. Let's get going back to Prox."

She nodded and took his hand, pulling close to him as she climbed out. "Do you think your parents are all right?" she asked. "And Saturos, Menardi, Agatio and Karst? And Alex?"

He was mildly amused when he heard her group Alex by himself. "I'm sure they're fine," he said, gently stroking her hair. "Even if they're not, I'll still protect you. I'm still here for you."

It was then that her sobs came through her tight wall of worry, and she collapsed against him in frantic tears that wreaked her entire body. "My father, Felix, he's--"

His eyes stung with his own tears. "I know, Kiana, I know. I'm sorry, but there was nothing we could do." He wished that he could have done something, fought the monster, healed Jykro, but all he knew was Quake and Cure, and he knew that wouldn't have been enough.

They embraced as the snowstorm began to change from a soft flurry into a blizzard. Felix realized that other people might be getting worried about them, and gently pushed Kiana away as she let out the cries she had held in for so long.

"We have to get back to town," he said, and began to lead her by the hand, carefully walking down the icy slopes of the mountain. The snow was getting worse every moment, and now the harsh wind was rolling in some sort of fog, which only served to make the ice on the trail more treacherous.

"It's really cold, huh?" Felix tried to joke, his teeth chattering in the harsh Proxian wind. "One would think that it'd get warmer since tomorrow's the festival and all." He again cursed himself for not wearing warmer clothing.

He heard Kiana speak, but the wind changed her voice into a muffled murmur.

"What was that, Kiana?" He started to turn around, then felt a sharp tug on his hand and heard her shriek. His heart nearly stopped when he realized that she wasn't there anymore.

He whirled around and dove to his knees, finding Kiana hanging onto the edge of the steep trail. "Kiana! Hold on!"

Her eyes were very wide. "Felix, help! I'm scared!" She was crying harder than ever now. Her fingers grasped at the rock, finding little to hold onto that didn't immediately give way under her weight.

He wrapped his hands around her wrists. "Someone help!" he yelled. "Anyone! Please!"

The wind muted his voice before it strayed very far from his mouth.

"Felix, pull me up! I'm scared!" Kiana's voice was trembling worse as the snow flew into her wet red eyes, stinging at her cheeks and turning her hands red with numb pain.

"I've got you!" he said. "It's all right!"

A part of his mind was frantic. He kept thinking about how high up they were, and the spike fields the Proxians had laid at the foot of the mountain. It was very slick. It was very cold. It was very windy. Kiana probably hadn't been able to see her next step, or had taken a wrong step, slipping over the edge of the thin trail. And were the beasts really gone? One of them could be coming up behind him now, or even waiting for Kiana to fall so she could be devoured. . . .

He tried to calm himself down, but there wasn't much that seemed to help.

"Grab my wrists, Kiana! Hurry!" The snow was turning to sleet, and his ungloved hands were beginning to ache.

She desperately moved her hands, trying to grip Felix's wrists so he could pull her back onto the path easier. The movement only made it harder for him to hold on, however, and he could feel himself beginning to slip.

He pulled, trying to use his weight to bring her back up to the trail, but found that he just wasn't strong enough.

"Felix," she whispered in her wavering voice, her eyes closed now to keep out the sleet, "am I going to fall?"

Her wrists slipped from his grip.

He lunged over the edge after her, but found that he wasn't fast enough to grab her arms or even fingertips. Leaning over the edge of the trail, he stared after her as she vanished into the white fog below.

From somewhere at the foot of the mountain, he heard a sickening crack.

He managed to make his way down the trail safely, though the wind still howled and the fog only got worse.

She was still alive when he found her.

The fall had impaled her on a couple of sharp rocks, one going through her left arm while another penetrated her right hip. Blood was running from her mouth, and her clothes were ripped from scraping against the rocks around her. All that Felix could see under the torn clothing was heavy bruising and ugly blotches; he suspected she was suffering internal bleeding. Her right arm seemed to be broken, along with both her legs and possibly several of her ribs. Another wound across her forehead was a bad scrape, letting blood course over her eyes and lips.

He gently pulled her off of the rocks and began to carry her back toward the village. Her blood, flowing freely with the rocks out of her body, soaked his arms and tunic.

"Am I going to die?" she whispered, her head sinking to her chest. She coughed once, bringing more blood to run down her chin.

"You won't die," he said. "I'll find Alex. He can heal you. Or, here--Cure!" The golden light flowed from his body into her.

She coughed again. Her blood was thicker now, and her wounds weren't healing any.

Worried that he might have done it wrong, he tried again. "Cure!"

A single Cure wasn't enough to seal Kiana's wounds. She leaned against him, crying.

"You won't die!" he said once more, cradling her gently in his arms.

"Stupid snowstorm," she choked. "Stupid monsters." She cried into his shoulder, her arms weakly wrapped around his neck. "Now I'll probably have to stay home during the Festival tomorrow."

Felix was silent.

"Do you think that Agatio might win tomorrow?" she muttered, her voice sounding slightly strangled and somewhat detached. "Actzir always wanted to see Agatio win just once."

Still, Felix said nothing.

"I hope Alex can make it so it doesn't hurt anymore," Kiana said, her face limply resting on Felix's shoulder. "I mean, it doesn't really hurt right now, but a minute ago . . ."

She trailed off. Her eyes fluttered to a close, and she collapsed, her head falling off of Felix's shoulder to rest on her own chest.

"I never realized just how cold it is here in the North," her faint whisper came.

Soon, her arms fell from their position around his neck.

And something in Felix's heart withered and died.

He carried a corpse into Prox that afternoon among blinding snow and rolling fog.

He left her in the snow near her house and retreated to the old couple's cabin, curling into a ball on his bed and shaking silently, thinking that if he stifled his cries they would go unnoticed.

The funeral pyre was held that night, exactly one year after the pyre mourning Prox's lost warriors. Kiana and Jykro had not been the only ones to die; Saturos' own mother had not escaped the wrath of the hungry beasts. Nor had several of the teenagers Felix's age. Saturos was the one to comfort Felix that night; the two embraced and cried together, Kiana's blood still on Felix's clothing and Saturos covered in his own scars from battling the creatures.

Alex also comforted him, while others were saying things like "if you had just been a bit closer" and "if you had only gone a little faster." Felix knew that their words were meant to comfort him, but he didn't want to be reminded anymore of what he hadn't been able to do. So he was grateful when Alex was silent and just let Felix cry on his shoulder.

Aftera moment, Alex whispered to him, "You did all you could. That's all she would want." But Felix shrugged off the words, knowing all he could do would never be enough.

The village was getting smaller and smaller, losing more citizens every day to an untimely death.

Bodies burned, sending spirals of smoke up to the heavens.

Felix hoped that Kiana was with Actzir and that both of them were living somewhere where it was sunny much of the time, but where it also rained. He wanted her so to see Angaran rain. Lightning and thunder.

He had promised to show her someday, and now he never could.

His tears nursed him into sleep later that night.

He slept through the whole Sun Festival the next day. Not even Saturos and Menardi could rouse him from his nightmare-governed slumber, and Alex thought it best that he be allowed to sleep. All three of them knew about Felix's connection with Kiana, and none of them wanted him to deprive him of what he needed most--time alone.

The day after the festival, the Felix who emerged from the cabin was a different person.

The Felix who was ready to travel to Contigo had partially died with his beloved sister Kiana.

* * *

**Felix's Journal**

June 20, Year of the Phoenix, Prox Village, Northern Weyard

She died.

It's all my fault. I couldn't save her, I'm the one who took her up so high into the hills, I should have let her walk in front of me instead of behind me.

She fell off of the mountain. It was slick with ice and cold, and the wind was bad. Fog was rolling in, and the snow was everywhere. She fell off of the mountain and onto the sharp rocks below.

I should have been the one to fall. Everyone in Vale thinks I'm dead anyway, but Kiana had a life ahead of her, a whole world to go explore, and now she'll never have the chance.

I'll never get to show her the rain, or the lightning as it cleaves the heavens in two. She'll never see the sun for more than that one day a year. She didn't even get to see it this year. I killed her too soon.

I can't feel anything. I'm numb all over. Her pyre was awful. So many people were buried. Saturos lost his mother, and many others lost their brothers and sisters, sons and daughters.

Why must this village undergo such suffering? Is this part of the Proxian curse Saturos told me about? Does the curse of the North that "marks" them also cause them to have such grief? Does that same curse starve the beasts of this land until they feed on people because there is nothing else to eat?

The Proxians are such good people. . . . why do they have to experience such pain?

Kiana, I miss you already. Can you ever forgive me for not being able to save you? I tried, Kiana. Please forgive my lack of strength.

If those monsters hadn't come along, nothing would have happened.

Why couldn't I save her? If I was just a bit stronger, then things would be different. Kiana's father would have survived. I wouldn't have had to run from the beasts.

If I was just a bit stronger, Kiana would still be alive now.


	9. Ch 9: The Travels of the Wayward

**Chapter 9: The Travels of the Wayward**

**

* * *

**

"Felix! Help me!"

He lunged down after her, stretching his arm as far as it would go, trying to reach her and pull her back up to the mountain. But she kept falling and falling, until the great rift behind the Lighthouse swallowed her up and laughed at him.

"Kiana!" he screamed, still holding his hand out into the darkness. "Kiana! You can't die!"

He heard her scream before the world below him began to crumble. He was suspended, a single person in the darkness of oblivion, watching the rest of the world die. There went Jenna, his parents, Saturos, Menardi, Alex. All of them dying along with Weyard.

He could do nothing to stop it.

Soon, he was the only person left alive, the rock he sat on being the only part of Weyard to survive the pull of the void.

He could do nothing to save any of it. Everyone would die because he was too weak to save them.

Alone in the darkness, he let out a choked cry.

He awoke covered in sweat, feeling that he hadn't slept at all. The cabin's ceiling rested overhead, plunged into darkness like the rest of the room.

Felix sat up, rubbing his eyes and letting out a breath. His eyes stung with tears, but he quickly wiped them away. He didn't want to cry. Not again. He'd been doing far too much midnight sobbing lately.

"Ah, that there was a spell to cure nightmares," Alex's voice said from across the cabin. "That would make sleep much easier, wouldn't it?"

Felix blinked, trying to adjust to the darkness so he could make out the Mercury Adept. "Alex? You're awake?"

"Yes, sadly I had a bit of indigestion last night and couldn't sleep." The lantern next to Alex's bed roared into life as he fed it some oil.

The Mercury Adept certainly looked like he hadn't slept. His blue-green eyes were reddened and circled with black weariness, while his hair was still neatly combed from not sleeping upon it. He was holding a glass of dark liquid; wine was Felix's guess as to what it was. He swished the liquid in his glass with one hand, gazing at it for a moment before returning his attention to Felix.

"How long have you been up?" Felix asked.

"Since you all went to bed last night," Alex replied. "I had migraines as well, but this has helped to settle them." He raised the glass in Felix's direction. "Cheers." He threw back his head, taking a long drink of the wine before giving Felix a weak smile.

"I'm sorry that you're not feeling well," Felix said, sliding out from under his sheets. Placing his feet firmly on the wooden floor, he sighed and let his chin drop to his chest. A sigh escaped his lips, and from across the cabin he could hear Alex do the same.

"We've been at sea for months, Felix," he stated. "Just how often have you been having these nightmares?"

Felix looked away. "Not often," he said. "Really."

"Now why," Alex wondered, "do I find that so hard to believe?" He rose from his cross-legged position on the bed, walking over and sitting next to Felix instead. "Is the misfortune with Kiana still bothering you?"

Felix swore softly and covered his eyes. If Alex hadn't mentioned it, he would have been fine. He could have kept on pretending that everything was all right, and his eyes wouldn't be tearing up the way they were right now, if Alex just had kept quiet. . . .

"Let it out," Alex said. "It's unhealthy to keep those emotions locked up inside you. They'll tear you apart, Felix. You have to let them out."

"I'm not weak," Felix managed to choke between sobs. "I'm not. I can save people. I'm not weak. I'm not weak."

"No one ever said you were weak, Felix," Alex sighed. He looked away. "You, in fact, are one of the strongest people I know. Not many could manage to dwell in a foreign land for so long, knowing that their friends and family at home believed them dead. Even fewer would have the ability, as you did, to tolerate and become part of a different culture. One that you had been warned about, no less. But you did more than accept them--you became one of them. Isn't the mask in your trunk proof of that?"

Felix stumbled off of his bed and opened the trunk that sat against the wall. Actzir's green mask was on top of all his clothing and other possessions. He took it in his hands and stared at it as Alex continued speaking.

"Acceptance, Felix, is the true strength you have. Growth, and the desire to help others. When all comes to an end, that will be enough. Or enough for you, perhaps."

Felix looked up at Alex's last comment. "What do you mean?"

"Alas, Felix, some of us long for things out of our reach, things we can never have. My instructor in Imil was a beautiful girl, though she was younger than myself. I still wish that she"--Alex clenched one hand into a fist-- "that she felt the same about me as I did about her. One day I'll show her that I'm the best. That I am the only one suited for her. I have to prove myself--not just to her, but to everyone." His aquamarine eyes turned their depths on Felix. "That lust to prove myself is my strength, Felix."

"But I wasn't strong enough," Felix whispered, placing his mask back in the trunk. His hands were shaking now. "I couldn't save her. I"--the images of his nightmare blazed in his mind-- "I can't save anybody."

Alex shook his head. "Felix, I told you. All she could ask for is all that you could do. You tried, Felix, you did the best you could." He stood up as Felix climbed back into bed. "Are you going to be all right?"

Felix buried his head in his pillow and was silent.

After a pause, Alex retreated to his own bed as well.

They had docked at a small inlet on the continent of Atteka, though they had to weave through multiple rivers to find their way to it. From there, Saturos deducted, it was only a day or so of walking until they would get to Contigo.

The inlet was bursting with people, surprisingly. Some children were playing in the shallows, while the adults gazed up in awe at the Proxians' ship. Whispers buzzed throughout the inlet as Saturos and Menardi passed.

One brave young child approached, tugging on Menardi's skirt. "'Scuse me," she whispered.

Menardi turned around and got to her knees, looking the little girl in the eyes. "What do you need, little one?"

The girl pointed back at a large group of children clustered on the beach. "Um, all of us were wonderin' if you're gonna light Mount Jupiter."

Menardi blinked and looked up at Saturos, whose red eyes were as cold as steel. "Why do you ask?" he said, his voice soft behind his hardened exterior.

"It's just . . . Mama and Papa told me that a biiiig boat would come to light the purple fire. But we don't got the other stuff in the stories done yet." The child put her hands behind her back, rubbing one foot in the sand.

"We just need to speak to your elder," Menardi said. "We're . . . tourists. We came because we wanted to see what Mount Jupiter looked like. We wondered if maybe we'd be allowed to explore it."

"Oh!" The girl nodded. "Okay!" She skipped back to her companions, who all began chattering loudly.

Menardi stood back up, and the group continued their journey.

It was late at night when they finally arrived in Contigo. Saturos tripped over a tree stump or two before lighting a small flame to act as a lantern. They finally found the inn, which they entered immediately.

After a bit of talk and a bit more payment, they had a four-bed room all to themselves.

"Get some rest," Saturos advised. "Whether their elder lets us or not, tomorrow we travel to the Lighthouse."

Silence resulted soon after. Only Saturos remained awake, sitting up in his bed and staring off into space.

What if the elder had the same reaction that the people of Vale did? What if he tried to kill them, or forced them to flee? Then they could never come back to Contigo, even when they did have the Elemental Stars.

He rested his head in his hands, pushing his skinny fingers through his silver-blue hair.

"By Iris, let this be the right thing to do. If it's not . . . I don't want to think about that. This has to be the right thing to do," he muttered. "Who am I, to be making such big decisions? I'm barely more than a child myself. I can't tell how the elder will react. I haven't even met him yet."

Something inside of him snapped, and he choked, "Why couldn't Nephtal be here instead of me? Why did he have to die?"

He couldn't see them, but another set of red eyes carefully watched him in the darkness.

Noon found the four inside the Sanctum, waiting for the Great Healer to arrive. Earlier that morning, he had consented to meeting with them and discussing their troubles.

He walked into the room at last, two monks flanking him. "What can I do for you?" he asked in a wheezing voice.

Menardi glanced at the monks. "We would like to speak to you in private, Great Healer," she said. The monks reminded her too much of Vale. Besides that, yes, three men could keep a secret, but only if two of them were dead. She had never been much of one for killing.

The monks stiffened. "In private?" one asked. "Whatever the Great One hears, we can hear also. Isn't that right?" He turned to the elder, who began to shimmer with a faint purple aura. He stared at Saturos, then at Menardi, and nodded as the lavender light faded.

"They mean me no harm, gentlemen. You may go now. You have duties to attend to."

The monks left, grumbling and muttering to one another as they did so. As soon as the doors swung shut behind them, the healer returned his attention to his visitors.

"Healer, we seek those with the blood of the Anemos," Saturos said. He had to word this perfectly, or . . . "Weyard is crumbling, and only with one Adept of each clan can we save it."

The elder's thick white eyebrows raised. "I beg your pardon?"

"What you did just now was Psynergy, wasn't it?" Menardi asked. "You read our minds and could tell that we didn't mean to hurt you."

"Psynergy? Yes, but I'm afraid it's the only bit of it I know. The Anemos blood has a very small influence on me, I'm afraid," the healer said. "But Adept--that is a word I have not heard for a long time."

"An Adept?" Felix spoke for the first time that day. "An Adept is one who has high levels of control over elemental powers. We were hoping that we might find a Jupiter Adept--a person with the power of wind--in your village. We'd heard that the Anemos blood still ran strong here."

The elder laughed. "It has not run strong' for decades, young one. Few are born nowadays with the power of Jupiter. And those who are not given power cannot tell those who are apart, so many of our--Adepts, you called them?--yes, many of our Adepts go untrained."

"Surely you know of someone?" Alex said. "A child, even, one that we may travel with in a year and a half or so? Anyone who can harness the skies would be of help."

"In the last two decades in Contigo, there have been only two born with power. A brother and sister. Both of them, however, left this place long ago. I do not know where either of them dwells."

Saturos' long ears drooped in disappointment. "But without a Jupiter Adept, we cannot get inside the lighthouse," he muttered.

The elder's eyes flickered. "What was that? You intend to light the beacons? Is that how you intend to save the world,' as you said?"

Saturos' head jerked up, his breath shortening as he realized that the healer had heard. "Great Healer, please, let me explain," he started.

The elder held up one hand. "I do not need to hear any more." He turned and walked out of the Sanctum, his blue robes fluttering behind him. Saturos, his face pain-stricken, followed.

Shortly out of the Sanctum, the healer raised one of his frail arms and pointed toward the northwest. "It is obscured by mountains, but about a day's travel away stands the tower we call Mount Jupiter." He turned to face them. "We have legends about this. If you do light the beacon, you will save the world, the legends say. I wish you luck. I only wish there was more I could do to help you."

Menardi sank to her knees. "You have done more than enough," she said.

The healer extended his weathered hand. "May the Gods smile upon you," he said.

Saturos took the man's hand and shook it, whispering a "thank you."

The group left an hour later. Several people said they'd seen them headed north, toward the mountains and the lighthouse. Rumors spread that the foretold time was drawing closer.

The Great Healer sat in the Sanctum, praying for the safety of those who would save the world.

"It's huge," Felix whispered.

A violet tower lanced into the sky among the Attekan mountains. It was nestled among cliffs, much like the Mars Lighthouse in Prox, but this structure seemed taller.

Or maybe it was just that Felix had only seen two lighthouses in his entire life.

"This is curious," he heard Saturos saying, and looked down from the sky to see the Proxian gazing at the doorway. "There doesn't appear to be any obstruction to keep us out. We could just walk in and explore, it looks like." He put one hand through the door. "Not even a force field," he muttered. He made a gesture to the others. "Well, come on. Let's take a look around."

Menardi, Alex and Felix all followed him. The moment Felix stepped inside the doorway, he felt something leeching his strength away, bit by bit. It felt as though someone was gently pressing on his shoulders, pushing his strength out of him and onto the floor. He took a long, deep breath, only to feel that something was forcing the air out of his lungs as well.

"Does anyone else feel kind of sick?" he asked in a shaking voice. Now his stomach was rebelling as well; he felt like he would vomit at any time.

Saturos glanced at him; the Proxian was busy trying to pry apart some stone doors. "You feel sick?" he asked, arching one eyebrow. "Why is that?"

Felix tried to speak, but the pressing sensation that surrounded him only got worse. "Power--leaving--pushed out," he managed, holding down the sickness that was gathering in his throat.

"Menardi, go outside with him. I think it might be the Jupiter power that's weakening him. I'm going to work some more on these. I'll be out in a few minutes." He continued to push and pull, grunting occasionally. Menardi, meanwhile, took Felix's arm and guided him outside, a small distance away from the tower.

He took long, deep breaths, trying to regain the power he had lost while in the Lighthouse. "What on Weyard was that?" he asked Menardi.

"Jupiter and Venus oppose each other," Menardi said. "Most likely, the oppressive Jupiter all around you began draining you. I suspect it might be like this for Saturos and I once we reach Mercury Lighthouse."

Felix made a face. "I don't ever want to do that again."

"You won't have a choice, I'm afraid," Menardi said. "Not if you're going to help us and see your parents again, anyway. We can't return to Prox until the beacons are lit, and we can't light all of them without having you with us."

"I know," Felix sighed. "I know, I know . . ."

Saturos soon emerged, Alex following him. The Proxian man walked over, stooping down to Felix's level.

"Are you feeling all right?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Felix replied. He and Menardi stood up, stretching. "So, where to now?"

"Well, the stone door wouldn't budge, so there must be something Jupiter Adepts can do to move it," Saturos said. "So, I vote we head back to the inn, stock up on provisions, and head off to our next destination."

Felix knew too well what that meant.

It was time to return to Vale.


	10. Ch 10: The Footfalls of a Ghost

**Chapter 10: The Footfalls of a Ghost**

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Not much had changed.

Vale was still a quiet little mountain town, set all in green grasses and trees. Sol Sanctum perched atop Mount Aleph, tucked away at the very back of the village. The people were still extremely shy when it came to outsiders; many of the adults had forbidden their children from speaking to the visitors. Felix understood this: the people of Vale believed that there were no Adepts outside of their own town.

How very wrong they were, he thought, watching everything outside of the inn's window. He had been to Prox, the native land of the Mars element; he had seen an old man use the power of Jupiter in Atteka.

How very naive the people of Vale were. They understood so little about the outside world. Vale was like its own little realm, enclosed by mountains, with a secret that must not be revealed. The villagers could not understand that others might have their abilities as well, and so they shunned all outsiders. Felix could see the foolishness in it now.

They had arrived in Vale yesterday morning. Alex had wandered off, saying he would dwell somewhere else, while Saturos had secured a room at the inn for the remaining three. They had taken the first day to scour throughout Vale for information, though they had received little. Saturos and Menardi had steered clear of both the Sanctum and the mayor's house, recalling the events that had conspired three years ago.

Three years, Felix reflected. It had been exactly three years since the horrid night that had changed everything.

He was wearing the mask Kiana had given him. He wanted his true identity to remain that of a ghost while he was here. No one needed to know that he was still alive, not to mention with such strange-looking visitors. The Valeans who had met them at the gate had immediately been unnerved by the appearance of the two Proxians and the masked man.

Not that Felix could blame them. Many people would have reacted in the same way. Saturos believed that the general distrust of Proxians was part of the Northern curse.

Still, Felix kept hope in his heart, thanks to the Great Healer they had met in Contigo all those months ago.

His appearance had changed even more over the months. His hair was even longer now than it had been when leaving Prox; it curled into thick bangs that hung over his face, and he tamed the rest in a ponytail that hung to the middle of his back. Despite his loathing of its kind, he had twined a green-brown scarf around his neck. He wore a green tunic and long breeches, with brown boots and a heavy cape hanging over one shoulder. At the shop yesterday, he had acquired a new sword to replace his beaten machete, along with a shield and some herbs and elixirs, just in case. His sword was strapped to his belt, while his other newly-acquired possessions rested on his unmade bed as he gazed out the window.

He hadn't realized how much he had missed Vale.

Saturos and Menardi were gone, looking for more information on the Sanctum. Felix had recommended talking to Old Man Kraden, his former Psynergy teacher, but couldn't remember where he lived. They had left anyway, deciding that they'd ask someone else for directions.

So Felix had been left alone.

"No one even came to say hello," he muttered, pushing back some of his hair with one hand. "Back before the storm, we used to run to visitors because we got so few of them. We wanted to see what people from outside Vale were like." He shook his head, pressing the fingers of his right hand to the glass that separated him from the rest of the world.

"How things have changed."

A sound from the staircase penetrated the fog of thought he was wandering through, and he turned around to see three teenagers standing in the entrance to the room, looking around.

The first of the three, apparently the leader, was a tall blonde boy with deep blue eyes. His hair was spiky and untamed, falling freely around his face and over his eyes. He was thin and long-limbed, wearing a blue tunic with a yellow scarf wrapped messily around his neck. A wooden machete was strapped to his back.

Felix didn't recognize him.

The second boy was even taller, with thick red hair that jutted into the air above his head in thick spikes. His eyes were a red-brown, and he wore a dark tunic with his machete at his side. He was built along more muscular lines than the blonde, but the two appeared to be equal in strength.

Felix didn't recognize him either.

He did, however, feel his heart begin to race when he saw the third person in the group.

She was about average height, with long auburn hair pulled into a ponytail. Her eyes were a cinnamon color, with hints of violet in them. She wore a pink dress and carried a wooden staff, using it like a walking stick.

He didn't dare say her name for fear she would hear him, but his mind was screaming it in deafening tones.

Jenna.

The blonde approached him, Jenna and the other boy following him. "Um, excuse me, sir, but we were wondering if you're one of the visitors."

Felix wondered how many pieces of advice these three must have ignored to want to come visit him. He hated to scare them away, but he had no choice. If they became involved . . .

He straightened up from his semi-slouch, his shoulders rising as he clenched his fists. "Do you have some business with me?" he asked in a soft, deadly tone.

The blonde drew back, his pale face marred with confusion. "No, I suppose not," he muttered.

Felix shook his head almost invisibly. "Then I suggest you stop wasting my time." To emphasize the fact that he wished for them to leave, Felix slid his hand to his sword and gripped its hilt in a slow, deliberate motion.

He winced when he heard Jenna speak as she pulled on the blonde's arm. "Isaac, let's go. Kraden's waiting for us, and this guy obviously isn't much of one for visitors."

He almost died under the resentful glare she gave him. A different part of his mind registered the name she said, and he looked again at the blonde.

Isaac. That thin, softspoken blonde was Isaac. How could he have missed it? That could only mean that the other boy was Garet, and he had no idea how he had missed that, either.

Had it really been so long that he couldn't recognize old friends?

And now he wondered just why in Venus' name he was doing this.

The logical side of his mind, which also conveniently lacked a good amount of emotion, reminded him that he had to detach himself from Vale. He was dead here. He had to remember that.

But seeing Jenna made it hurt to remember his own death.

Garet, meanwhile, was frowning and cracking his knuckles. "Look, mister, what you said to Isaac just now wasn't very nice! I suggest you offer an apology, or I might have to beat it out of you!"

Isaac rubbed his forehead with one hand, looking exasperated. "Garet, stop," he sighed. "He's a visitor to Vale. You're supposed to be polite to him."

"Some kind of polite he's been!" Garet replied. "Did you know his group hasn't even come to see my grandfather yet?" Garet's grandfather was the mayor. "Not to mention the way he was talking to you, Isaac!"

"Do you have business with me or not?" Felix asked, his voice growing deadlier by the minute.

Forgive me, Jenna. You would never understand.

"Yeah, we have business with you!" Garet said. "We have business with you outside!"

Felix shook his head again and chuckled as he turned to face the window again. "You claim you have business with me. However, that is too bad, as I have none with you. Now begone. I wish to be alone with my thoughts." That was a lie; though he did wish to be alone, by no means did he wish for his thoughts to remain as well. There were far too many of them at the moment, all of them raging uncontrollably and striving for priority among the others, bit-by-bit tearing away at his sanity.

Isaac took a couple of steps back, pulling Garet along with him. "It was, um, nice to meet you. Let's go meet Kraden, guys."

When Felix turned around again, they had gone.

He reached up, carefully untying the straps of his mask. He let it fall to the floor, where it made a loud clatter as it landed.

He raised his gloved hands and ran them through his thick brown hair. "By the Gods," he whispered, "what have I done?"

It was a half-hour before Saturos and Menardi came back to the room.

"Let's get moving," Saturos said, picking his sword up from the bed. "They're going to the Sanctum as we speak."

Felix looked up, then bent over and picked up his mask. Tying it back around his head, he asked, "Who's going?"

"Some children and the Kraden you spoke of," Menardi said, tying her scythe on her back.

Felix's eyes widened under his mask. "Was there a blonde, a red-headed boy, and an auburn-haired girl?"

Saturos narrowed his eyes. "Yes. Why do you ask? Do you know them?"

"The girl--she's my--" Why was it so hard to say? Why wouldn't the words just come out of his mouth as easily as they had years ago? "She--she's my sister." The words seemed to cut his throat like so many knives. "The boys used to be my friends, Isaac and Garet."

Menardi's eyes widened. "Oh, Felix, they're your . . . oh, by the Gods . . . "

"I'm all right," Felix assured. "It just--after not seeing her for so long--she's grown up, and I haven't been there to watch."

"It must hurt," Saturos said. "I can't begin to imagine how it feels, Felix."

"They came to see me while you were gone. Wanted to meet the visitors, I suppose," Felix said. He didn't have to smile; the mask hid all emotion that might taint his face. "I was a bit rude to them, I'm afraid. But I'm dead here, and perhaps I should stay dead. I don't want them getting involved in this ordeal."

"They're going to have to be," Saturos said grimly, "because they're the ones we're following to the Sanctum. Get your equipment, Felix."

Felix checked to make sure that his sword was properly fastened to his belt, then picked up his shield. Stuffing the herbs into a pouch on his belt, he asked, "You won't hurt them, will you?"

Saturos shook his head. "After all this time, Felix, you should know better than to believe that we would hurt innocents."

"Especially not Jenna," Felix said.

"Especially not Jenna," Menardi echoed.

"Promise that you won't get them involved," Felix said, holding out one of his hands.

Saturos nodded, shaking Felix's hand as he did so. "I promise. Let's hurry now, or we'll never manage to catch up with them."

With that, the three left the inn and headed up toward Mount Aleph. A rather bored monk was walking from one side of the village Sanctum to the other, looking around and yawning. As soon as he was out of sight in the shadows, Saturos and Menardi dashed past, Felix close behind.

The inside of Sol Sanctum was all blue stone floors and brick hallways, with torches glowing every few feet. The group rushed through the corridors into another room, the walls lined with statues of priests holding swords. The floors had changed to white-and-violet marble, and there was one statue pushed to the side, revealing a doorway.

"Just as I'd hoped!" Saturos whispered. "The old man took my counsel!"

Continuing through the door, they leapt over a small pool and went through another door. Winding pathways of marble led them to a room plunged in faded darkness, a small light glowing on the wall while a portrait of the moon radiated pale light.

Menardi's eyes lit up. "After all this time," she whispered. "They must have disabled the trap, Saturos! They've already activated the portal!"

"Shh," Saturos commanded. "Listen."

Faint voices emerged from the light on the wall. "Here it is, Kraden! We've got the second Elemental Star!" That was unmistakably Garet.

"Good, good!" the voice of an elderly man replied. "Now go fetch the others!"

"We must go," Saturos said. "Felix, you remain here for a bit. You'll know when to come in if we need you."

"But where is Alex?" Menardi said.

"Who cares? Let's just go," Saturos replied. "We'll see you when we return, Felix. We'll call you if we need you." He and Menardi touched the light and vanished.

Felix continued to listen to the events occurring on the other end of the portal

Jenna gasped and cried, "What are you doing here?"

"Quiet, girl, we don't want your companions to know you're here."

"I-I can't b-b-believe you f-followed us," Kraden stuttered.

"Believe it," Menardi said.

Garet's voice again. "We've got the Jupiter Star now, Kraden!" Silence followed, and then there was a "Kraden!" from Garet, and a "Jenna!" from Isaac.

"It looks like they've spotted us," Saturos grumbled.

"And here I thought we'd be safe until they'd gotten the Elemental Stars," Menardi sighed.

"What do you mean to do with the Elemental Stars?" Kraden demanded, though his voice shook. "Are you trying to steal them!"

"Master Kraden, are you calling us thieves?" Saturos asked, sounding taken aback.

"As I recall, you stole our information on how to get in here," Menardi added.

Jenna was next. "What will you do with us once you've gotten the Elemental Stars?"

"I'm sure they'll do us in once they no longer need us!" Kraden exclaimed.

Felix touched the light, and almost instantly found himself drifting down onto a blue crystal pillar which stood in a waveless sea. Pale lights drifted through the dark air, and the crystal was smooth but firm under his feet. "No," he said firmly. "You shall not be hurt." Then, turning to Saturos and Menardi, "That was our agreement, was it not?"

"They'll be safe," Menardi said. "We just need the Elemental Stars in exchange for their safety."

Felix winced but nodded, and Saturos called, "Will you accept our terms?" This was directed to Isaac and Garet, who stood across the room, near a statue of a goddess.

Isaac hesitantly nodded, and Kraden broke in, "No, Isaac! You must not give them the Stars!" Turning to his captors, he demanded, "We have no guarantee that we'll be safe once you have the Stars! How do you expect us to trust you without proof that you will keep your promise?"

Saturos and Menardi exchanged glances before Menardi spoke. "A guarantee, is it? I have only one." Turning to Felix, she said, "It seems that you will need to remove your mask."

It felt like cold water was being poured into his empty body. His soul seemed to freeze. "But . . . that means . . ."

"There is no other way," Saturos said, shaking his head slowly. "You must be our guarantee. They demanded one, after all. And under the circumstances, we have no choice. Felix," he sighed, "remove your mask."

Jenna's eyes became very wide. "F-Felix?" she said, her voice just above a whisper. "This can't be--he can't be--"

"Wasn't Felix the name of your brother?" Kraden asked. "That mischievous little lad who was my student before the accident?"

"Yes, but three years ago . . . the storm . . . my brother, he . . ." Jenna stammered. Her eyes were very large, and she was staring at Felix as she trembled with disbelief. "It has to be a lie," she whispered. "It has to be."

"I'll do it," Felix said. She sounded so torn; even if he didn't reveal himself, she would never be the same. "I'll . . . remove my mask."

Yes, he decided. It was finally time for the ghost to return to life, no matter how much it wanted to remain dead.

Sometimes, it was necessary for the dead to rise from the grave, if only to walk the world once more.

If only to give hope to those who had always been alive.

He turned around and untied his mask, tying it to his belt before turning back to face everyone. Jenna let out a shriek, bringing her hands to her face.

"I-It's not possible," she whispered, her voice shaking worse than an earthquake.

"Is he . . . ?" Kraden asked. Jenna looked down.

Felix swallowed, trying to find his voice. "I know I've caused you much grief, Jenna." Was that him speaking in that thick, horrid voice? "It was a miracle that I survived that day."

"We are the ones who saved him," Saturos interjected, a certain tone in his voice begging her to understand.

"I've been traveling with them since," Felix explained. "I've experienced a lot." More than you would ever comprehend, he added mentally.

"But why?" Jenna's voice was louder, but no less shaky. "Why did you leave me all alone . . ." She shook her head, letting her hair fly out in an auburn arc. "My own brother!" she cried. "I thought you were dead!" She turned away, her shoulders shaking, as she began to cry.

Saturos shook his head. "I hate to interrupt, but there is no time for this now. We need the Elemental Stars as soon as possible."

Menardi turned to face Isaac and Garet. "Felix would never allow us to harm you, his sister, or Kraden. So hand the Stars over!"

The two exchanged a short conversation, after which Garet took three Mythril bags in his hands and started toward the center platform.

In a rush of blue light, Alex appeared before him.

"Will you permit me to relieve you of those Elemental Stars?" Alex asked, holding out his hands.

"You're late, Alex!" Saturos called, looking both relieved and upset at the younger man's sudden appearance. "Alex is another of our companions. You may give the Stars to him."

After a bit of grumbling, Garet did so. Alex smiled and began to float back to the group, the three silver bags in his arms.

"Wait!" Garet said. "What about Kraden and Jenna?"

Alex shook his head, looking down at the red-headed boy. "Didn't you understand Saturos' request? We want you to bring us the Mars Star as well."

"But you promised," Garet protested feebly. "You said you'd let them go."

Saturos shook his head. "We need all the Elemental Stars."

Garet's head sank, and he retreated to where Isaac stood as Alex floated over to them.

"Ah, here we are," Alex said, handing the stars to Saturos. "Now all we have to do is wait."

So they waited. Isaac shot Felix a dirty look as he passed on his way to the Mars Star, but Felix looked away and said nothing as his childhood friends passed.

"My brother is alive," Jenna was whispering, "but . . . why didn't he come back sooner?"

Felix knew it hurt her, but it hurt him as well. So, instead of speaking to anyone, he just watched as Isaac and Garet made their way to the Mars Star.

Isaac picked it up and slipped it into a Mythril bag, but suddenly clutched the goddess statue for support when the ground began to shake.

Menardi began looking wildly around the chamber. "What went wrong? What happened?"

"No! Not again!" Saturos cried, his eyes wide.

There was a flash of light, and the water evaporated instantly to reveal a sea of molten lava lurking below. Felix pulled Jenna close to him, trying to protect her and keep her from falling.

Alex gritted his teeth and glanced around. "Without the energy of the Elemental Stars, this chamber is collapsing!" he hissed.

Kraden looked about the chamber, but, unlike Saturos and Menardi, his eyes were full of awe, not worry. "Is this the retribution of the Gods the villagers mentioned? No! This must be Alchemy's might!"

Within a few more seconds, the room had stopped shaking.

"It's over," Menardi sighed in relief. "But what exactly was it?"

A pale glow began to illuminate the room. Saturos glanced over toward where Isaac and Garet had been and froze. Jenna glanced up as well, and her eyes became very wide. Felix looked as well.

A perfectly round, silver boulder was hovering between the center platform and the one where the Mars Star had been. It had a large blue eye set into the rock, and was seemingly looking around the chamber.

"What is that?" Jenna exclaimed.

"No!" Saturos whispered, his face turning a bony white. "No!"

"Could that be the Wise One, the guardian of the Elemental Stars?" Kraden asked in total awe.

Rocks began to fly through the air, exploding when they came within a certain distance of the Wise One. Felix wrapped his arms around Jenna, feeling a few rocks hammer against his back. He had to protect her.

The Wise One's eye locked upon them for a moment, and the quaking under their feet began again.

"This doesn't look good," Felix called to Saturos. "Perhaps we should escape while we can."

Menardi frowned. "But the Mars Star--"

"I agree with Felix. We're no match for this guardian," Alex said.

"What about Isaac and Garet?" Jenna demanded, breaking free of Felix's arms. "You can't plan to just leave them here!"

Saturos looked back at where the two boys were, hidden behind the goddess statue to protect themselves from the collapsing chamber's debris. Felix saw conflict and sorrow in his eyes as he turned to look at Jenna. "I'm afraid," the Proxian said, "that there's very little chance they'll make it out of this place."

Jenna covered her mouth, and Menardi, eyebrows furrowed over pained eyes, asked, "But surely there's some chance they'll survive?"

Saturos looked again at where the two boys hid. "Anything is possible, I hope," he mused. "So what should we do?"

"Save them!" Jenna cried.

"There's no time for that, I'm afraid," Alex replied. "However, if we bring you with us"--he grabbed Jenna's wrist-- "and they do survive, they'll want you back. And they'll bring us the Mars Star in exchange for you." A wicked smile curved on his cheeks.

"Is that all I am to you?" Jenna demanded, yanking her wrist free of Alex's grip. "A bargaining chip?"

"I can't get her involved," Felix interrupted. "This isn't her problem. I can't let her be hurt."

"You have no choice about her involvement, Felix, unless you want her to die," Saturos said. "You can't want that, but if we leave her, that's what will happen. Her getting hurt is what will happen if she stays! Is that what you really want?"

Felix gritted his teeth and looked at Jenna, praying that she would return his gaze. But she was refusing to look at him, much less acknowledge the difficulty of his decision.

It hurt to see the contempt she held for him and his companions. It hurt more than anything he had ever felt, save Kiana's untimely death.

He looked at Saturos and Menardi, and saw that they, too, were finding the situation difficult. Saturos kept looking back at the Wise One and the platform where Isaac and Garet stood, and Menardi was nervously fidgeting, fixing her hair, dress, and anything else that could possibly be tampered with.

"Well, Felix?" Menardi asked at last. "What do you think?"

Alex glanced at the portal, then took another look at the Wise One, his eyes wide and caught somewhere between wonder and fright. "We can discuss this later. Right now, we must flee!"

Saturos glanced once more toward the Wise One. "It is only too bad that we could not save those boys," he muttered. "I hoped that no more innocents would die."

Menardi bit her lip. "But there's nothing we can do. You said it yourself, Saturos."

"No!" Jenna exclaimed. "Save them!"

"Please," Alex interrupted, "can we go now?"

Felix nodded at last. "All right. Let's go."

Saturos was the first through the portal, followed by Kraden, then Menardi. Jenna took one last look at the Inner Sanctum.

"Isaac! Garet!" she called. "Don't die!"

Felix escorted her through the portal, and a moment later, Alex followed. Felix cast a quick Retreat, and the party scurried down the mountain and out of Vale. Saturos and Menardi dragged Kraden, while Felix carried Jenna and Alex followed closely behind.

Felix hoped Isaac and Garet had survived, but he had other worries now. Like Jenna.

Storms brewed over Vale as the six ran, and they heard the eruption begin as they fled into the woods.


	11. Ch 11: Memories and Lullabies

**Chapter 11:**

**Memories and Lullabies**

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The sky was thick and velvety black with clouds that had rolled in over the horizon, terminating the brilliant blue depths of the once-afternoon sky. Rain poured from the heavens like the tears of so many angels, covering the ground in water and mud. Ashes mixed with the raindrops, having been spewed into the air by Mount Aleph's wrath. Lightning cut the sky into a jagged line with a sharp white knife, while thunder growled as it loomed over the plains of central Angara.

The travelers, a group of six, had come knocking at the inn's door in the middle of the storm. Miada, the innkeeper, had unfortunately been forced to turn them away—there was only one room in the inn, and three men were already occupying it. She'd also had to refuse Master Hammet, the richest merchant in all the lands, because of the lack of accommodations her inn held.

Due to this, she was pondering adding some space on to the tiny inn.

Still, she couldn't forget the way two of the travelers had looked beneath their cloaks—the mask-like markings that were seemingly painted on their odd-colored faces, the long, pointed ears, but mostly the eyes. The blood-red eyes.

Suppressing a shudder, she continued counting her money. Those three guests they had were generous with payment, if nothing else.

Meanwhile, Saturos had managed to find a cave for the group to spend the night in. It was dangerously close to the thieving town of Lunpa, but it was only for one night, and, by his reasoning, even a thief would have second thoughts about going out in this weather.

They had passed a line of trade caravans on the way, where a rather rich merchant named Hammet had been staying. Apparently, he, too, had been turned away from the inn. His group was fairly large, so it was understandable that the inn hadn't been able to accommodate them.

However, there had been a small blonde boy among the older merchants who had an eerie aura. Something about him gave Saturos and Menardi the impression of cold mountain winds and thunderstorms, along with reminding them of the old healer's power in Contigo. They would have abducted him if not for the men all around.

"Besides," Alex had said, "do we really wish to take a chance when we are not even sure if the power is coming from him?" The Mercury Adept had a point there; so many men were around that it was hard to tell if the aura really was coming from the boy.

But Menardi swore that she had seen power in those large violet eyes the boy had. And the way he kept staring at them!

"In any case," Saturos said as he finished bringing the supplies into the cave as Alex guided him with a small lantern, "it's too late to go back and snatch him now. He seemed to be the favorite of the guards and that Hammet fellow. We couldn't get away with him if we tried." As he sat down, Alex set the lantern down as well.

"But what if he's one of those two children the Healer in Contigo was talking about?" Menardi demanded. "He's our only hope, Saturos!"

Saturos sighed, pulling off his headgear and letting his silver hair course around his chin. "We'll have another chance, Menardi. I'm sure of it."

Menardi took this opportunity to pull off her own headband. Her long blonde hair was soaked with rain, and she began to carefully wring it out near the side of the cave. Jenna and Kraden remained near the entrance, silently shivering as Alex herded them inside.

Jenna shot the Mercury Adept a dirty look. "If you so much as touch me again, I'll kill you," she warned in an overly cheerful tone. Alex just smirked back at her, his eyes sparkling with interest and amusement.

Felix saw the smart comment forming on his lips, and interrupted, "Leave my sister alone, Alex."

"That goes for you, too!" Jenna exclaimed, turning to face him. "You have no proof that you're really my brother! He's dead, so quit acting like you're him!"

Felix turned away, grief in his eyes.

"Really, girl, what reason do we have to lie to you?" Menardi demanded. "Felix protected you within the Sanctum. Not a day of those three years went by without him thinking of you. And now you blatantly turn him away?"

Jenna glared at the older woman. "He is not my brother," she whispered, her tone of voice deadly with warning.

"No matter how you try to assure yourself of that, it's incorrect," Saturos said. "He is Felix, your brother. And he's missed you more than anything, so you could try to be civil to him, girl."

"Saturos, leave her alone," Felix interrupted. "She can think what she wants to. I don't wish to deny her of that."

Menardi shook her head. "But Felix, she—"

Felix gave Menardi a weak smile. "It's perfectly all right. Don't worry about it, Menardi."

Still muttering to herself about how ungrateful Jenna was, Menardi sat down. "Alex, did you get some wood like I asked you to?"

"Yes, but it's rather drenched, I'm afraid," Alex replied, setting a small pile of sticks on the cave floor.

"It doesn't matter," Saturos said. He held out one clawed blue hand. Fire bloomed in his palm before flying to the wood and setting it ablaze. A cloud of wet black smoke followed before the tinder dried and began to burn merrily.

Kraden's eyes were wide. "You are Adepts?" he gasped as Alex extinguished the lantern.

"Come now, Master Kraden, if we weren't, then how could we gain access to Sol Sanctum's inner chambers?" Saturos said.

"By following us, of course!" Jenna said, looking annoyed.

"Wrong, girl," Menardi said, shaking her head in Jenna's direction. "We've been to Sol Sanctum once, long before you and your friends ever considered such an idea. How else could we have been able to give Kraden such detailed directions?"

Jenna's eyes widened as she worked out the details. "The storm was triggered by Sol Sanctum," she whispered. "That's what that trap was supposed to do, right, Kraden?"

"Well, yes, I suppose," Kraden stammered.

Jenna leapt to her feet. "You're the ones who triggered that storm!"

"Be assured, girl, we're not proud of that fact," Menardi replied. "Many of our people died that night."

Jenna wrinkled her nose and turned away. "I'm going to bed!" she announced, retreating to a corner of the cavern.

"Fine," Alex told her, "but you should know that I'll be sleeping near the entrance to keep you or Master Kraden from exiting in the night. Know that I am not a heavy sleeper."

Jenna sank to the cave floor, ignoring everything Alex said, and began to clear rocks away to create a flat bed-space.

"Saturos, I forgot," Menardi said suddenly. "We don't have any extra bedrolls. We weren't anticipating having any more people along with us for some time."

Saturos grimaced. "That is a good point," he muttered. "I suppose that you and I could give ours up."

"No," Felix interrupted, "I'll let Jenna use mine. The earth is bed enough for me." Stretching out on the rough, rocky floor, he grinned. "I _am_ a Venus Adept, after all."

"That still leaves Kraden," Saturos said. "I suppose he can have mine. I'll use the ground as a bed in the same way as Felix." He reached up to his shoulders, undoing two small clips that held his armor in place. It clattered to the ground, leaving Saturos in a dark red tunic. Menardi was wearing little armor, but what she had donned during the day now came off, leaving soft fabric underneath. She carefully twisted the handle of her scythe until it came apart easily, then stashed the two halves in her bag. Saturos had sheathed his sword and stowed it with his own supplies.

"Don't you even think about trying to use our weapons against us," Menardi warned the two Valeans. "Not only do you have no idea how to handle them, but they're specially crafted for the Northern Mars Clan. Any normal person who dares touch them will receive a nasty burn." At this, Felix visibly winced, remembering when he had attempted to use Saturos' blade in practice back in Prox. It had left him with a nasty blister that had taken almost two weeks to heal—during which time Saturos insisted that he continue training. Needless to say, it had not been a pleasant ordeal.

Jenna remained quiet, but Felix practically saw the questions forming in Kraden's eyes before they reached his lips.

"Specially crafted, you say?" he asked, speaking for only the second time since leaving Vale. "How is it so? Do they contain special jewels that amplify their psynergetic parallels with Mars? Could it be that the weapons themselves are charged with power and therefore only to be wielded by a certain race? Jenna is a Mars Adept, so why couldn't she wield them?"

As Kraden's questions continued, Saturos rolled his eyes and sighed loudly. Menardi shook her head, arching one eyebrow in Felix's direction. Felix himself simply shrugged. Old Man Kraden had always been like this. It was actually kind of nice to know that he hadn't changed.

"While this old man keeps babbling, I suggest that we get some sleep," Saturos said. "I'm sorry we couldn't eat tonight, but there was no time to buy food, much less to hunt or scavenge. Tomorrow we'll have plenty to eat." Out of his sack, he pulled two bedrolls: his and Menardi's. Felix got out his own bedroll, and Alex pulled a slightly slimmer roll from his much-less-equipped pack. Saturos tossed one bedroll to Menardi, who deftly caught it, but his throw to Kraden ended up hitting the elderly scholar in the gut and rendering him speechless.

Felix walked over to Jenna and held out his bedroll. "Here. You can use this to sleep in tonight," he said.

"I don't want anything from you!" Jenna snapped, glaring at him in the dim firelight. He saw rage and confusion stirring themselves together in the depths of her eyes. "You can keep your stupid bedroll! Just stop pretending to be my brother!"

"But I'm not pretending," he whispered.

"My brother," she said fiercely, "would have come back for me if he was still alive. You didn't come back. You're not him."

He drew back. "Is that why you won't believe?" he asked. "Because no one ever came for you?"

"I was alone!" she hissed. "You would never understand what it feels like to lose someone so dear to you, you imposter!"

Flashes of memory. Wanting to return to Vale. Mother and Father sick, Kyle unconscious. Worry and desperation. Picturing Jenna over three empty graves. Emptiness, sorrow, regret. Kiana. Self-loathing. Not knowing who Isaac and Garet had become until he heard their names. Disbelief, despair. The looks of betrayal on their faces. Guilt.

He dropped the bedroll on the ground, turned around, and walked away. Jenna glared after him. Back turned to her, he stretched out once more on the hard earth and pulled his cape over him in an attempt to stay warm. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine that none of what Jenna had said was real; that he had imagined the whole thing.

Alex cast Douse on the fire after Jenna and Kraden finally climbed into their bedrolls, and the party went to bed, Felix still closing his eyes in denial of all he had heard.

_It's not true it's not true I'm really me it wasn't my fault I wanted to come back I felt alone too believe me believe me believe me . . ._

_Imposter fake pretending no proof acting he's dead you're not him I don't want anything from you . . ._

He opened his eyes, expecting to hear silence greeting him. Saturos and Menardi were fast asleep, while Kraden was gently snoring, so he knew that some time had passed between closing his eyes and opening them again.

The sound that interrupted the sleeping, snore-punctuated quiet was one that Felix never would have expected to hear: sobbing. Soft crying came from the opposite wall of the cave, where he knew Jenna to be laying.

He blinked, clearing the little sleep he had gotten from his eyes, and quietly crawled over so he sat right behind her.

She was on her knees, her hands tightly crossed over her chest, as she sobbed into the empty night air of the cave. Her auburn hair was down, flowing freely around her back and over her shoulders. The bedroll she knelt on was crumpled; she had obviously gotten some sleep. She was shaking as she tried to keep her crying quiet, not wanting to wake anyone up.

Felix wrapped his arms around her and began to hum a soft melody in her ear. She stopped shaking and managed to twist in his arms so that she was looking up at him through a thick wall of tears.

"That song," she whispered. "Mother used to sing it before we went to sleep."

He continued humming; it had been so long that he could not remember the words to it anymore. So he kept the melody going, gently rocking Jenna back and forth in some hope of comforting her.

One of her trembling hands found its way to his face. "By the Gods," she whispered, "you're real. You're . . . you're Felix."

He tightened his embrace with her and whispered in her ear, "I haven't been able to hold you like this for three years, Jenna. Please forgive me if I'm embracing you too tight, but it feels like I can't let you go or you'll be alone again. I won't be with you anymore if I let go right now. So just . . . please."

Jenna rested her head on his shoulder. "But you never came back, so I thought—" she whispered.

"I didn't have a way of coming back," Felix replied. "It's very difficult to sail out of Prox, the northern city where Saturos and Menardi live. And they spoke of lighting the beacons, and explained to me why it had to be done."

Jenna suddenly pulled back. "Then tell me," she whispered. "Tell me why you're going to release Alchemy to wreak havoc on Weyard. Make me understand, Felix."

_I can't,_ Felix thought. _You'd never believe me; your mind is too tainted with the teachings of Vale. But I have to tell her something . . ._

"They have our parents as hostages, Jenna," he said. "We have to light the beacons, if only for the safety of our parents." It was a horrible lie, one he knew he would regret later, but the teachings of Vale that had been so deeply rooted in her mind would surely taint any real reasons that he told her.

Fire lit in her eyes. "They what? Our parents are still alive?"

He nodded slightly, and let out a small grunt of displeasure when she threw herself into his chest. Her crying had restarted, and he had the uncomfortable sensation of Jenna blowing her nose into his shirt.

He winced. "Jenna, I have a handkerchief if you need it," he offered, though he knew the effort was too little, too late.

She leaned back and smiled weakly at him as he scrubbed at the spot with his cape. "Sorry."

"It's all right," Felix said. "Anyway, get some sleep now. We have a long journey ahead of us."

Jenna nodded and climbed back into the bedroll, wiping at her eyes with one hand. "Goodnight, Felix, and thank you," she said as she closed her eyes.

Felix, his heart warming once again, turned and retreated to his wall, where he curled into a ball and slept.

"Quite cute, aren't they?" a low masculine voice asked, punctuating the night quiet after a few minutes.

Menardi sat up and gazed down at Saturos, who grinned meekly at her. "And here I thought I was the only one eavesdropping," she scowled.

Saturos' grin widened. "After all this time hanging about with you, one would think I'd pick up on some of your habits."

She playfully smacked him on the chest. "Well, stop it! You're taking all my fun away!"

His grin faded. "I do wonder, though, why exactly Felix told her that their parents are 'hostages,' and not just living in Prox."

"I think I understand," Menardi said. "Think about it, Saturos. You know how long it took for the Valean adults to accept our ideas and reasons for doing what we did. Jenna's nearly an adult now as well. It would take her a while to understand what we're doing. Not to mention why."

Saturos sighed. "I suppose you're right." He rolled to one side, his red eyes troubled. "I wish it could happen that way for me," he muttered. "I wish Nephtal had come bounding out of the Sanctum, yelling 'I'm still alive, Saturos! Don't leave me behind, you dolt!' But . . ." His voice trailed into nothingness.

Menardi pressed a finger against his lips as she laid back down. "It wasn't your fault, Saturos. Would it have been any better if you were dead, and Nephtal was here mourning the fact that you didn't spring from the Sanctum walls?"

He pushed her finger away. "Sometimes I wonder," he said, and left it at that.

"Saturos, Saturos," Menardi sighed, "what am I ever going to do with you?"

Saturos did not reply, but rolled over to his other side so his back was facing Menardi. She sighed irritably before closing her eyes and falling asleep.

It wasn't until several minutes after she was deep in rest that Saturos replied.

"Thank you, Menardi."

They had not stopped by Vault on their way to their next destination. The mountains near Lunpa and Vault had a small pass in them shrouded by forest, but that was where the party was traveling now.

And Jenna was being very grumpy.

"Felix told me that you're holding our parents hostage," she said to Saturos.

"Well, Felix was right on one part of that. Your parents are in Prox," the man said, frowning slightly as he hacked and slashed through the growth.

"So you are holding them hostage?" she demanded.

"Funny that you trust Felix so much when last night you didn't even believe that he was your brother," Menardi said. "Are you feeling all right?"

"I'm feeling fine!" she declared. "I just want to know how you could be so heartless as to keep our parents hostage!"

"They're not hostages, girl," Saturos said. "They're being treated with the greatest respect and love by our people. But if you want to see them again, you'll come with us to light the beacons!"

Jenna grimaced and Menardi shot a look to Felix. Felix winced and shook his head slightly, then looked at the ground.

"Excuse me, but is this matter really worth arguing about?" Alex interrupted. "Your parents are alive, Jenna, isn't that enough for you? Should it matter if they are hostages or not, as long as they are alive?"

Jenna scowled and stuck her tongue out at him. Alex merely smiled in reply.

Several more hours passed before they managed to find a cave at the base of the Goma Mountains. They made their way up the cliffs near if and into the cave. Alex remained outside for a moment, gazing at a precariously-hanging ivy-wrapped tree trunk. It had seemingly been blown over in the storm from Mount Aleph, and now hung over the cave entrance like a dangerous pendulum.

Stepping forward a bit, Alex held out his hand and blasted the trunk with a spray of water. He hurried inside as the trunk crashed down onto the cliff, part of it breaking off and flowing downriver.

"What on Weyard was that bit of nonsense about?" Saturos asked.

Alex shrugged. "Well, Isaac and Garet will most likely follow us. That ought to slow them down a bit, at least."

Jenna's face brightened momentarily. "Do you think they did survive, then?"

"Perhaps," was Alex's enigmatic reply.

"One would hope so," Saturos said. "We wouldn't want anyone more to die in this venture."

"What? I don't understand," Jenna said. "What do you mean, you don't want anyone else to die?"

"We lost eighteen of our people at Sol Sanctum last time," Menardi said. "I told you this last night, but you wouldn't listen then. We don't want anyone to get killed by our mishaps."

"Well, what about Isaac's father?" Jenna demanded. "He died!"

There was no answer. Alex did smirk, and Felix stifled a laugh, but no words were spoken. Jenna looked around.

"What's so funny? I don't get it!" She stomped one foot and folded her arms.

It took about an hour to make their way through the cave. It was dark and very damp, and reeked of dust and mildew. A stream ran through the cavern, sourcing the river they had seen outside. When at last they found their way out of the darkness, they found a small town and a sunset awaiting them.

Saturos went into the town while the others waited, then returned.

"We've got ourselves a room," he said. "There are only four beds, but I'll happily use the floor and a bedroll."

"Same here," Felix said. "I don't mind that at all."

"Why don't you just make Alex sleep on the floor?" Jenna asked. "He hasn't done much work as of yet!"

Alex blinked, his aqua eyes large with disbelief. "I beg your pardon? What do you mean, I haven't done much work? You haven't been around to see whether I have or not!"

"Actually, Alex, she does have a point," Saturos said, grinning and pushing back his long bangs with one hand. "You can have Felix's spot on the floor tonight. I'll still take the other."

Alex's eyes narrowed now, and he adopted a sour expression as Jenna laughed at him. Felix himself barely resisted snickering, and Menardi was smirking.

"Rather feisty, aren't you?" he asked Jenna, tossing back his hair with one hand.

She grinned and stuck her tongue out at him, playfully instead of spitefully this time.

The travelers headed into the town, chatting and laughing like friends for the first time.


	12. Ch 12: Curses and Hypocrisy

**Chapter 12: Curses and Hypocrisy**

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"That tree is seriously creeping me out," Jenna said. "Get away from it, Kraden!"

"But it's such a fascinating specimen!" Kraden protested. "See how its trunk is twisted into some sort of grotesque face? And its limbs, Jenna!"

Bilibin was a rather peaceful city, ruled over by a kind lord named McCoy. His castle was at the rear of the town, shrouded by trees, with a smaller palace being built beside it. The buildings were stout and clean, with deep wells scattered about the ground. The only unpleasant spectacle was a tree near the city's front gates. The face of a screaming man was twisted into the wood, and it had two limbs that looked suspiciously like human arms.

"I wonder if perhaps this is some sort of evolution," Kraden said, plucking one of the leaves from the tree. "It's too small to be an adult specimen, but it does appear to be fully-grown."

Whispers fled from the mouths of the citizens who watched Kraden rambling and experimenting with the tree. One man, a stout fellow with tanned skin and black hair, stepped forward.

"That's a man-tree," he said.

Kraden, his eyes wide with amazement, looked up at the man. "A man-tree?" he asked breathlessly.

"Yes," the man said. "See, this lumberjack from Kolima came wandering in here, sobbing that he'd been cursed by the sacred tree, and turned into this." He gestured to the tree, staying a safe distance away from it.

Saturos took an unconscious step back. "All right, so that decides it. We stay well away from any more human-shaped trees."

Kraden's lower lip trembled, as if he was a baby about to cry. "But what about my research?"

Menardi shook her head. "Kraden, we can't just . . ."

"Come, now, Master Kraden, I'm sure you'll have a chance to research these . . . specimens . . . another time." Alex pulled the scholar away from the man-tree.

"But there are so many possibilities!" Kraden whined. "The leaves, the bark, the roots, all of them could have restorative properties! The possibilities! The secrets that could be contained within the shell of that tree!"

"No," Alex said, dragging Kraden away by the wrist. Saturos, looking quite disgusted with the whole idea, also turned and walked away. Menardi, Felix, and Jenna followed.

"He hasn't changed much, has he?" Felix muttered. "Still the stubborn old scholar he always was."

"You have no idea," Jenna groaned. "It _was_ his idea to go up to Sol Sanctum, you know."

Felix drew back, raising his eyebrows. "It was?" When Jenna nodded, he frowned. "I wonder why. What interest would an elderly scholar have in the origin of Alchemy?"

"You should have heard him! 'Alchemy is based upon the four elements of the world: fire, earth, air, and water. These elements compose everything, including us! With the elements of Alchemy aligned, Psynergy will be boundless upon the world once again!' He was awful, Felix! You couldn't understand! He never shuts up!"

"I guessed as much. He was like that before I left as well, you know."

"Felix! Jenna! Hurry up!" Saturos called to them. "We've got to visit the weapons shop and get going. Imil awaits us!"

Jenna sighed. "Coming, Saturos!" She grabbed Felix by the wrist and dragged him along behind her as she caught up with the others.

"I can walk on my own, you know, Jenna." Felix yanked his wrist out of her grasp and adjusted his glove, which she had pulled loose. "It's not like you have to watch me all the time, you know. I'm not going to disappear or anything."

Jenna glanced at him for a split second and looked away, saying nothing. Menardi looked between the two, tossed back some of her hair, and sighed.

"You two are just hopeless," she said. "Come on. I want to see if there's any good armor in the shop." She walked off, Saturos alongside her. Alex remained behind, chatting with Kraden. Felix observed the amount of talking that Kraden was doing and was rather surprised when he noticed that Alex seemed to be enjoying it.

He tapped Alex on the shoulder. "Do you need rescuing?" he asked more out of curiosity than anything else. "I know that Old Man Kraden talks an awful lot."

Alex didn't look back at Felix. "No, Felix, I'm fine. I find Master Kraden's theories most interesting. You go ahead to the shop with the others. I'll catch up later."

Felix shrugged. He really couldn't dissuade Alex if he was so bent on being bored to death by the elderly scholar. "All right, Alex, whatever you say. Don't say I didn't warn you." Alex waved one hand over his shoulder, still engrossed in whatever Kraden was lecturing on at the moment. Felix turned to Jenna. "Shall we go?"

"Yeah. If Alex gets bored he can get himself out of the situation." Jenna whirled around and pushed open the door to the weapons and armor shop. A small bell rang overhead as she stepped in. Felix followed not far behind.

Menardi was already at the counter, inspecting a leather vest and a pair of thick leather gloves. "Don't you have anything of a finer make?" she asked. "Chain mail, or steel, or anything?"

"I'm sorry, miss, that's the best I can offer," the armor dealer, a thin man with ruffled brown hair and a moustache, said. "Perhaps you'd prefer a shield to gloves?"

Menardi set the leather vest back on the counter, thoroughly disgusted. "I could buy jewelry that would protect me more than this!"

The armor dealer took the vest and gloves away, stashing them back under the counter. "Well, miss, I'm sorry that I don't have more to offer. We've been out of our finer buys for some time now, and with the road to Kolima closed off . . ." He shook his head.

Saturos put the sword he had been inspecting down and muttered a few words to the weapons dealer, who put it back in a display rack on the wall. He then glanced over at the other merchant. "The road to Kolima's closed?"

"Yes, what with the curse and all. I'm sure you saw the man-tree at the front of the city? It's said that all the people in Kolima have been transformed in the same way. So Lord McCoy had a barricade built near the river to keep people away. He doesn't want anyone else getting hurt or transformed, you see."

"Bah!" the weapons-dealer interrupted. "He's just covering his own mistakes, I think. You know it was him who started cutting down the forest, and that's why the sacred tree cursed Kolima."

Felix raised his eyebrows. "Sacred tree?"

"The god of Kolima, boy! The great sacred tree!" The weapons-dealer sighed and rubbed one hand across his counter. "Lady McCoy got in her mind that she wanted to live like a queen, and heaven knows how much the Lord loves her. He's no more than her lapdog when it comes to things like that."

"Well, it's not like the Lord told the sacred tree to curse the lumberjacks," the armor-dealer countered. "How could he have seen it coming?"

Saturos took a step back from the counter. "I think perhaps it'd be best if we headed onward to Imil now."

The shop owners quit arguing and glanced back toward Saturos. "Imil? But it's almost winter now. Imil will already be buried in snow," the armor-dealer said.

"It's not like we don't know that already." Saturos rolled his eyes. "We're going to go see the Lighthouse. You know, the tower of the Gods."

The other shopkeeper raised his eyebrows slightly. "Whatever for?"

"Consider it tourism, if you must," Saturos said. He turned to leave the store, motioning to the others. Menardi followed, grumbling something under her breath about poor service and bad goods. Jenna followed as well.

"I don't suppose you'd happen to be warriors, since you came in here," the weapons-dealer called after them.

"And if we are?" Felix glanced back at him.

"Lord McCoy's offering a good reward to whoever can rid the land of the curse. I thought such an offer might interest warriors like yourselves."

"Unfortunately, we don't have any time," Saturos said. "We have to be on our way to Imil at once. There's a very important engagement there which we have to fulfill."

The armor-dealer sighed. "I suppose if you're too busy, then . . ." His voice still had a twist of hope in it, though.

"I'm afraid that's exactly the situation," Menardi said. "Come on, let's go." She was the first out the door.

Jenna was pouting slightly as she and Felix followed. "Maybe _they_ couldn't use any of that armor, but I sure could. There haven't been any merchants in Vale for ages, practically since the storm."

"That long ago?" Felix looked down at her.

"Yes, after that, Vale almost completely sealed itself off to visitors. The elders and monks kept saying that strangers had caused the storm before, and they didn't want it to happen again. Saturos and Menardi must have been those strangers, I suppose." Felix winced as Jenna continued speaking. "I suppose it's of no importance now," she said. "After all, we're not exactly in Vale anymore, are we? What a world! I don't understand why the elders won't ever let us travel, not even to Vault unless it's necessary . . ."

"Because the elders are foolish." Before Felix knew it, the words slipped from his lips. He winced when Jenna turned and stared at him incredulously.

"You didn't just say what I thought you did," she said. "Tell me you didn't just say what I thought I heard."

"Jenna, if you understood what I've seen, you might know why I think that way."

"Well, I haven't seen what you have, now, have I Felix? I _don't_ understand, and I think your insulting everything I've been raised to believe is rather rude! If it's Saturos and Menardi who taught you these manners, then I'm glad that I don't like them!"

"Jenna, please . . ." While Jenna was being quite loud, as was natural for her (or so Felix supposed), Felix was keeping his voice soft. He didn't want Saturos and Menardi to get into this conversation; no matter how they wanted to help, their attempts at friendship would only make things worse.

"I don't see why I should have to keep quiet all the time! I'm the hostage in this situation, and—mmf!"

Felix had clapped a gloved hand over her mouth. "Jenna, if you don't shut up, then I _will_ let Saturos and Menardi deal with you, and even I don't know what they might do if they're angry enough. They'd never kill you, as you're my sister, but if it was necessary for them to hurt you to calm your nerves . . ." even Felix was a bit surprised at what he found himself saying, "then I certainly wouldn't object."

Jenna stared at him, her eyes wide and shining in disbelief.

"Jenna, think about it for a minute," he whispered. "What's more important to you, being able to talk, whine, and moan the whole journey, or being able to save our parents?" He was still angry that he had to keep concealing the truth like this, but it was too soon for Jenna to understand just what was going on in reality.

She half-closed her eyes and looked down. He removed his hand from her mouth.

"Are we agreed?" he whispered. She nodded, and he let out his breath. This might not be so bad after all.

"I guess it's okay," Jenna muttered. She looked up at him and tried to smile, but something in her eyes screamed of betrayal and despair. "It'll be okay," she said. "Really, it will."

She turned away and took a few quick steps away from Felix to catch up with Saturos and Menardi.

"Jenna . . ."

She didn't respond or even glance back at him to acknowledge that he had called her. He winced.

_I really messed up this time, didn't I?_

They soon found Kraden and Alex, Alex leaning against the city wall and still good-naturedly listening to Kraden's lecture. Despite how tiring Felix had found the old scholar to be before the storm, Alex seemed more than intrigued with his theories.

"Are you two quite done?" Saturos asked, folding his arms.

Alex looked up at the taller man, and Kraden trailed off in midsentence. "Not quite, but we can be on our way if need be," the Mercury Adept said. "Find anything you liked?"

"In this backwater ditch? Not a chance," Menardi snorted. "Let's just go. It'll take a week or so to get to Bilibin cave, and another bit of travel to get to Imil from there. And it's not like we have any time to waste."

Alex stood up and stretched. "I must say, Master Kraden, that some of your theories on Alchemy are most interesting," he said. "You may want to chat with Saturos and Menardi a bit later. I'm confident that they would understand exactly what you're talking about."

Kraden's eyes sparkled with interest, and he turned to face Saturos and Menardi, who at the same instant had turned to face each other. Felix watched them closely, wondering if they were thinking the same thing he was at that instant.

_Could Kraden possibly know about the deterioration of Weyard?_

"We must compare theories later!" Kraden said. "I'm quite excited to hear your thoughts on Alchemy and the four elements."

"As are we," Saturos said after a pause. He nodded to Menardi, and Felix found himself wondering if the two had a telepathic link. The Proxian then turned to face Kraden. "Later, of course. We've no time to waste. Come now, it's time that we were going." He turned toward the gate to the town.

A soldier barricaded the way with his spear.

"I hate to be rude, but if you are warriors, I must humbly request that you go see Lord McCoy," he said.

Saturos snorted and lazily scratched his cheek. "And do you plan to force us to go?"

"We'll fight you if we must," Menardi said. "We're in a hurry, so move aside."

The spear twitched slightly, but the guard shook his head and kept it in position. "Please. All of our other warriors haven't come back from the forest. We need all the help we can get."

"What part of 'we're in a hurry' don't you understand?" Menardi demanded. She pulled her scythe off her back. "_Move!"_

Saturos put a hand on her shoulder. "Menardi, no."

She scowled. "But Saturos . . ."

"Menardi, we've already shed enough innocent blood on this quest. Let's not shed any more, all right?" Saturos glanced at the guard out of the corner of his eye. "Which way to the manor of your Lord?"

"It's at the back of the city," the guard said. "Tell the guards at the door that I sent you and they'll let you in. Head straight down the corridor to reach Lord McCoy's chamber."

"I'll make no promises about what we can and cannot do," Saturos said. "After all, we have little time to waste, and going to Kolima would extend our travel time quite a bit. But we will talk to your Lord and see what we can do."

The guard bowed his head. "Thank you. You've no idea what this means to us. Some of the people in this village are from Kolima, you see, and we're very concerned about our home. But with the barricade up, we can't even go see if the stories about the curse are true . . ." He sighed.

"We understand," Saturos said. "We're traveling for the sake of our own home village, so we understand quite well. We'll talk to Lord McCoy."

"Thank you," the soldier whispered.

Saturos turned around. "Well, let's go. We have little time to waste as it is, and now we have to go talk to Lord McCoy as well. Come on." He led the way to the back of the town, where McCoy's manor loomed over them. The soldiers at the door crossed their spears, denying the party entry.

"Lord McCoy will see no one," one of the guards said. "He is too concerned with the crisis in Kolima to accept visitors now."

"The guard at the gate wanted us to speak with the Lord," Menardi said. "Seemed to think we might be able to help you."

The guards exchanged glances, and one of them surveyed the group. His eyes caught Saturos's sword, Menardi's scythe, and the scabbard at Alex's side. "Very well. You look skilled enough; you may pass. As long as you don't plan on taking those children and that old fellow into Kolima with you." He gestured toward Felix, Jenna, and Kraden.

_"Children?_" Jenna's mouth twisted into a scowl. "I'll show you who's a child!"

"We make no guarantees about even entering Kolima," Alex told the guard. "But they are part of our traveling party, and we can't simply leave them behind."

The guard frowned, but withdrew his spear. "All right. You may pass." The other guard pulled his own spear back as well, and the party entered Lord McCoy's castle, walking through the long corridor to a large set of wooden doors.

"Who's there? Enter," a voice said from within the chamber. Saturos pushed open the door, took a few steps, and swept a bow.

"We are warriors from the northern wilds, Lord McCoy, and we were asked to come see you concerning the crisis in Kolima."

McCoy was a rather round man, with a bulbous nose and tired eyes. He sat behind a table at the back of the room, tapping his fingers on the arm of his chair.

"None of my warriors have yet returned from Kolima, and they are the finest in this part of the land, let me assure you," Lord McCoy said in a thickly accented voice. "And yet you think that you might be able to rid me of the curse?"

"To tell you the truth, my lord, we didn't wish to come in here, but your soldiers were rather insistent about it," Felix said, looking up from his own bow. "You see, we're on our way to Imil, and we'd like to get there as soon as we can."

"Then you have no time to help me?" McCoy sighed. "What I wouldn't give for some warriors who could take care of the problem for me . . ."

"I'm sure you'll meet some eventually, my lord," Alex said. "We would be pleased to help under normal circumstances. However, our reasons for journeying are of the utmost importance. We are most troubled by your plight. Perhaps, if the problem is not dealt with by the time we return from Imil, we may be able to help you."

Menardi shot a look at Alex, but Lord McCoy had already gotten to his feet. "I thank you for your generous offer. Once you return from Imil, if you feel like helping me is within your means, then, by all means, return."

"Of course," Menardi said through gritted teeth. She gave Alex another glare, but the Mercury Adept merely smirked back at her. "If that is fine with you, Lord McCoy, we will take our leave." She got to her feet and promptly walked out the door. Saturos stood, nodded to Lord McCoy, and followed. The rest of the group was not far behind.

They were not far out of the gates of Bilibin before Menardi turned to Alex and glared at him.

"Who are you to make promises for our party, Alex? Who are you to tell people what we will and won't do? Last time I checked, you were not the leader of our group! Saturos and I are the only ones who can make decisions for the entire party! Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal," Alex said. His eyes were half-closed, as if he wasn't really listening to what she was saying. "I just think it's sad that we can take no time to help a village in need."

"Don't you say that to me!" Menardi hissed. She grabbed Alex by the collar. "You don't get it, do you? Has your time in Prox taught you nothing? If Prox is not a village in need, then I don't know what is!"

"So it's only your own village that you'll save then, is that it?" Alex's voice was eerily calm. "You're hypocrites. You are desperate to help Prox, yet when another village suffers, you turn your back? Is this what you were taught in Prox?"

Menardi's took a step back, letting go of Alex as she did. "I . . ."

"Sadly, yes," Saturos said. "That is what we were taught. Unfortunately, the elders of Vale are not the only foolish ones. But there's little we can do about it, Alex."

"That's exactly what I find sad," Alex said. "Now, let's go. We have a long way to go, and _no time to waste._" The last four words of his sentence were far more bitter than they had been when Menardi had said them in Bilibin.

For a small moment, Felix wondered why Jenna hadn't spoken to him for a while, and then pondered why Alex was acting so oddly.

Alex walked away, his shoulders square and stiff, and the rest of the group followed.


End file.
